THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


AN   AMERICAN    SUFFRAGETTE 


AN  AMERICAN 
SUFFRAGETTE 


A  NOVEL 


BY 

ISAAC  N.  STEVENS 

Author  of  "  The  Liberators,"  "  Popular  Government 
Essays,"  etc. 


NEW  YORK 
WILLIAM  RICKEY  &  COMPANY 

1911 


Copyright,  1911,  by 
WILLIAM  RICKEY  &  COMPANY 

Registered  at  Stationers'  Hall,  London 
(All  Bights  Reserved) 

Printed  in  the  United  States  of  America 


PRESS    OF  WILLIA 


M    G.    HEWITT,   61-67    NAVY    ST.,    BROOKLYN, 


PS 

y\v\ 


DEDICATION 

To  those  noble  and  courageous  women  of  England 
and  America  who  are  trying  to  demonstrate  to  the 
world  that  Civilization  cannot  reach  the  supreme 
heights  of  progress  without  giving  freedom  to  the 
mental,  spiritual  and  physical  energies  of  women,  and 
that  government  will  always  lack  a  vital  element  in  its 
functions,  so  long  as  women  are  deprived  of  equal 
participation  in  its  operations — THIS  BOOK  Is  RE- 
SPECTFULLY DEDICATED  BY  THE  AUTHOR. 


1865899 


"But  life  shall  on  and  upward  go ; 

Th'  eternal  step  of  Progress  beats 
To  that  great  anthem,  calm  and  slow, 
Which  God  repeats." 

— Whittier. 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTEB  PAGE 

I.    A  DOCTOB  RETURNS  FROM  INDIA 1 

II.    A   MYSTICAL   PARADE 15 

III.  THE  MYSTERIOUS  YOUNG  WOMAN 22 

IV.  A  SUFFRAGE  BAZAAR  AND  BALL 33 

V.  HYPNOTISM  USED  FOR  AN  ANAESTHETIC  ....    46 

VI.  SOME  STRENUOUS  ANTI-SUFFRAGISTS     ....    56 

VII.    CHRISTIAN  SCIENCE  AND  SURGERY 61 

VIII.  THE  OMNIPRESENT  EYES  OF  FIFTH  AVENUE  .    .    74 

IX.    LOVE,  JEALOUSY  AND  Music 82 

X.  A  DISCUSSION  OF  PROGRESSIVE  WOMEN     ...    91 

XI.  THE  ADVANCING  COLUMN  OF  DEMOCRACY  ...    99 

XII.  A  TUBERCULAR  KNEE  AND  A  WORRIED  SURGEON  .  117 

XIII.  AN  ANTI-SUFFRAGE  MEETING 125 

XIV.  FAITH  Is  THE  BASIS  OF  ALL  PROGRESS    ....  140 
XV.  AN  EVIL  PROPHECY  BEGINS  TO  BEAR  FRUIT  .    .  154 

XVI.  THE  MYSTERIOUS  MURDER  OF  EMMA  BELL      .    .  164 

XVII.    THE  ARREST  OF  DR.  JOHN  EABL 180 

XVIII.    DR.  EARL  Is  INDICTED  FOR  MURDER 194 

XIX.    A  GREAT  MURDER  TRIAL  BEGINS 199 

XX.  A  WOMAN  AND  SPOOKS  FIND  A  LETTER  ....  211 

XXI.  SILVIA  HOLLAND'S  GREAT  PLEA  TO  THE  JUBY    .  225 


AN    AMERICAN 
SUFFRAGETTE 


CHAPTER   I 

A  DOCTOR  RETURNS  FROM  INDIA 

AMONG  the  hundreds  of  people  who  were 
awaiting  the  arrival  of  the  big  Cunarder  there 
were  two  groups,  the  second  of  which  seemed 
determined  that  the  first  should  not  get  far 
away.  The  young  men  of  which  this  second 
group  was  composed  represented  the  various 
newspapers  of  New  York  City,  and  while  a 
"beat"  was  evidently  impossible,  each  of  them 
was  determined  to  get  a  line  for  his  own 
journal  from  the  returning  hero,  Dr.  John 
Earl,  which  he  would  not  share  with  the  others 
of  the  fraternity,  and  several  of  them  held  anx- 
1 


An  American  Suffragette 

ious  consultations  with  their  photographers 
who,  by  special  permit,  had  been  allowed  upon 
the  pier. 

The  other  group  had  moved  a  number  of 
times  to  escape  the  cameras,  and  a  red-haired 
youth  was  expatiating  upon  the  glories  of 
American  scientific  achievement,  concluding 
with  a  peroration  that  called  forth  an  exclama- 
tion from  one  of  the  older  men : 

"Oh,  shut  up,  Bedford;  you  sound  like  a 
Fourth  of  July  oration.  Who  are  the  people 
you  are  trying  to  snapshot  for  your  lurid 
sheet?"  he  said  wearily,  as  becomes  a  Chicago 
newspaper  man  when  in  New  York. 

The  red-headed  one  looked  at  him  with 
cheerful  surprise.  "Don't  you  know  any- 
body?" he  asked.  "The  tall,  handsome  blonde 
is  Mrs.  Ramsey,  wife  of  George  Ramsey,  at 
whose  frown  the  great  gods  sit  tight  and  the 
little  ones  scuttle  to  cover.  Luckily,  he  is  a 
kindly  disposed  arbiter  and  the  Street  basks 
under  his  smile." 

The  Chicagoan  turned  and  looked  at  the  lady 
curiously,  and  the  reporter  went  on:  "The 
fair-haired  lady  with  the  wild-rose  face  is  old 
Gordon  Kimball's  daughter;  born  with  a  dia- 
mond teething  ring  in  her  mouth,  but  has  never 
2 


A  Doctor  Returns  From  India 

succeeded  in  getting  anything  else  of  value  in- 
side her  pretty  head." 

"Well,  she  doesn't  have  to,"  said  the  West- 
erner. 

Young  Bedford  grinned.  "That's  what 
Dr.  Earl  thinks;  he  can  furnish  brains  for 
the  family.  Their  engagement  was  reported 
two  months  ago.  The  man  with  them  is  Earl's 
brother,  Frank  Earl,  corporation  lawyer,  am- 
ateur actor,  one  of  those  guys  that  does  every- 
thing well,  and  never  gives  away  his  own  hand. 
Go  after  him  for  a  story  about  some  combina- 
tion his  road  has  gone  into  and  you  come  away 
with  a  great  spiel  about  bumper  crops ;  always 
gives  you  the  glad  hand,  but  nothing  in  it. 
You'd  never  take  him  for  Mrs.  Ramsey's 
brother,  would  you?  She's  a  looker,  all  right. 
So  is  Dr.  Earl,  one  of  these  big,  hand§orje, 
powerful-looking  men  that  makes  folks  ask 
who  he  is." 

"What's  all  the  hullabaloo  about,  anyhow?" 
asked  the  Chicago  man. 

"Where  have  you  been  that  you  don't  know 
about  Earl?"  answered  Bedford.  "Why,  I 
thought  everybody  in  the  country  had  heard 
of  him.  He's  the  chap  that  raises  the  dead, 
you  know;  just  takes  'em  by  the  hand,  makes 


An  American  Suffragette 

a  few  passes,  and  says,  'Say,  it's  time  to  wake 
up,  old  fellow,'  and  the  dead  one  sits  up  and 
asks  for  beefsteak.  He's  the  man  that  saved 
Hall,  the  copper  mines  king,  over  in  Paris. 
Hall  was  finished,  all  done  but  putting  him  in 
a  box,  when  in  comes  Dr.  Earl.  'Let  him 
alone,'  he  says.  'He's  tired  out.  When  he 
finishes  this  nap  he'll  be  just  as  good  as  new.' 
But  you  know  how  impetuous  the  French  are, 
and  they  were  going  to  have  poor  old  Hall 
done  for,  sure  enough,  when  this  Earl  man 
stands  them  off,  and  promises  to  bring  Hall 
'round  in  six  hours.  And  he  does  it  after  the 
whole  bunch  of  them  have  parleyed  over  him 
and  waved  looking-glasses  across  his  mouth, 
and  found  him  as  dead  as  Rameses." 

There  was  a  general  buzz  among  the  news- 
paper men,  and  one  of  them,  older  and  more 
dignified  in  manner  than  the  others,  said 
quietly,  "Bedford,  you  ought  not  to  hand  out 
that  kind  of  fiction,  even  in  your  unreliable 
journal." 

Bedford  winked  slyly  at  the  Chicagoan.  "It 
was  my  only  hope,"  he  said  in  a  rapid  aside. 
"That's  Tourney.  He  was  over  there  at  the 
time,  and  he'll  tell  us  all  about  it  trying  to  put 
me  right. 

4 


A  Doctor  Returns  From  India 

"If  you  don't  like  my  story  you  can  give  us 
the  straight  steer  yourself,  Tourney,"  he  said, 
and,  nothing  loath,  the  older  man  told  how  Hall 
had  been  suddenly  stricken  with  appendicitis 
in  such  severe  form  that  an  operation  was  nec- 
essary at  once.  Upon  this  the  French  surgeons 
agreed,  but  his  heart  action  was  so  bad  that 
they  dared  not  administer  an  anaesthetic,  and 
one  of  them,  who  was  a  noted  hypnotist,  ex- 
pressed a  doubt  whether  he  would  be  able  to 
rouse  the  patient  from  a  hypnosis  sufficiently 
profound  to  enable  them  to  perform  the 
operation. 

"This  Frenchman,"  Tourney  went  on, 
warming  to  his  subject,  "had  seen  Earl  do 
some  wonderful  things  and  he  knew  he  was 
in  Paris  and  where  he  was  stopping.  He  put 
the  case  to  Hall,  and  seeing  that  it  was  all  day 
with  him  unless  something  was  done,  he  told 
them  to  send  for  Earl  and  they  got  him  there 
on  the  double-quick.  I  was  waiting  in  the  hall 
when  he  went  into  the  operating  room  and  I 
stayed  there  until  he  came  out,  and  as  I  had 
done  him  one  or  two  good  turns  he  told  me 
about  it  before  he  realized  that  I  was  a  news- 
paper man.  When  he  saw  me  last  I  was  coach- 
ing Harvard  students  with  more  money  than 
5 


An  American  Suffragette 

brains.  That  has  nothing  to  do  with  it,  except 
to  show  that  he  isn't  one  of  these  'for  publica- 
tion only'  wonder  workers." 

"Hurry  up,"  said  the  Chicagoan,  "he'll  be 
here  in  a  few  minutes,  and  if  he's  one  of  these 
human  clams  you  are  the  hope  of  the  press. 
What  did  he  tell  you?" 

"He  agreed  with  the  others  in  the  main 
points,  but  he  said  if  Hall  was  willing  to  take 
the  chance,  he  believed  he  could  pull  him 
through  by  a  system  he  had  seen  used  in  India. 
Then  he  cleared  them  all  out,  and  when  they 
came  back  Hall  was  comatose.  The  appendix 
was  removed  in  record  time,  and  the  wound 
cleansed.  Just  before  Earl  finished,  one  of  the 
Frenchmen  noticed  that  the  patient  was  not 
breathing,  apparently,  and  exclaimed  that  he 
was  dead.  Dr.  Earl  pointed  out  the  fact 
that  the  blood  showed  no  signs  of  other  than  a 
normal  condition,  such  as  would  be  found  in  a 
patient  under  hypnosis.  His  idea,  as  I  got  it, 
was  that  the  patient  must  be  kept  unconscious 
long  enough  for  the  body  to  regain  its  func- 
tions and  get  over  the  strain  of  the  operation. 
He  told  them  if  he  were  more  familiar  with 
Hall's  constitution,  he  would  be  inclined  to 
prolong  his  condition  of  suspended  animation, 


A  Doctor  Returns  From  India 

but  under  the  circumstances  he  would  restore 
him  to  consciousness  in  three  hours. 

"One  or  two  of  them  got  excited  and  swore 
the  man  was  dead,  and  according  to  a  lot  of 
tests  he  was,  but  the  rest,  knowing  he  would 
have  died  anyhow,  were  willing  to  wait,  and  at 
the  end  of  the  time  Earl  brought  him  back  to 
consciousness  in  such  good  condition  that  the 
other  doctors  were  wild  over  it.  In  their  en- 
thusiastic French  way  they  heralded  the  story 
everywhere.  I  thought  he'd  never  be  allowed 
to  leave  Paris.  They  wanted  to  keep  him  right 
there  and  string  medals  around  his  neck  and 
pin  ribbons  all  over  his  coat,  but  he  wouldn't 
stand  for  it.  He's  an  awfully  modest  fellow, 
and  he  went  over  to  London  with  Hall,  who 
swears  by  him;  says  he  believes  he  put  a  new 
heart  in  him,  and  all  that  sort  of  thing.  There 
comes  the  boat  now.  Better  have  your  pho- 
tographers ready,  for  all  you'll  get  will  be  a 
picture  of  him  keeping  his  mouth  shut." 

As  the  big  English  boat  swung  slowly  into 
its  dock,  with  the  help  of  half  a  dozen  tugs 
that  puffed  and  pounded  at  its  side,  the  news- 
paper men  and  Dr.  Earl's  family  caught 
sight  of  Rim  simultaneously,  as  he  waved  his 
7 


An  American  Suffragette 

hand  and  called  across  the  intervening  space 
with  all  the  abandon  of  a  returning  traveler. 

He  could  make  them  hear  now.  "Leonora, 
dear,  how  are  you!"  as  a  remarkably  sweet- 
faced  girl  threw  a  shower  of  kisses  in  his  direc- 
tion, which  passed  on  their  way  an  equal  num- 
ber of  his  own.  "And  Hilda!  And  for  the 
life  of  me,  there's  Frank!  Love  to  all  of  you!" 
A  few  minutes  more  and  he  was  with  them. 
He  caught  the  girl  in  his  arms  and  gave  her  a 
long  and  tender  embrace.  Then  he  turned  to 
the  others  and  greeted  them  with  all  the  fra- 
ternal warmth  natural  after  eighteen  months' 
separation. 

"How  splendid  it  is  to  see  you  all  again! 
What  brought  you  to  New  York,  Frank?" 

"Oh,  just  to  see  if  I  could  cross  Broadway 
without  being  bumped  into  by  a  trolley  car  or  a 
taxi-cab  or  an  airship.  Incidentally,  to  keep 
you  from  losing  your  breath  and  hearing  in 
the  new  tunnels  through  which  you  will  be  shot 
under  these  New  York  rivers." 

"Tubes,  you  mean,  brother  dear,  tubes.  I've 
been  doing  nothing  else  but  shoot  the  London 
tubes  for  the  last  fortnight." 

"Where  I  live,  in  the  wild  and  woolly  Rock- 
ies, we  call  them  tunnels,"  answered  his 
8 


A  Doctor  Returns  From  India 

brother.  "Wouldn't  the  railroad  builder  howl 
at  the  idea  of  'tubing  the  mountains,'  and  the 
miner  would  have  a  war-dance  of  delight  at 
the  suggestion  that  he  must  'tube  his  claim.' 
These  English  airs  are  all  right,  Dr.  John 
Earl,  but  you  may  as  well  learn  to  talk  real 
American  if  you  expect  to  chop  bones  and 
exploit  microbes  in  this  country,"  and  the 
young  man  glowed  his  admiration  while  ply- 
ing him  with  badinage. 

The  first  greetings  were  scarcely  over  when 
the  newspaper  men  made  known  their  mission, 
Tourney  acting  as  spokesman  for  them  all. 
Earl  shook  his  hand  warmly. 

"I'm  awfully  glad  to  see  you,"  he  said,  "but 
you  know  I  never  give  interviews.  I  don't 
know  how,  to  begin  with,  and  I  couldn't  say 
anything  that  would  interest  your  readers.  I 
have  come  back  to  practice  my  profession  in 
New  York  City;  that  is  all  I  can  tell  you." 

"But  that  Paris  case,"  pleaded  Bedford. 
"Do  tell  us  about  that." 

"Did  you  use  the  Hindoo  method  of  respira- 
tion that  the  Swami  Bramachunenda  gave  an 
exposition  of  here  two  or  three  years  ago?" 
asked  another  of  the  fraternity,  and  the  others 
9 


An  American  Suffragette 

followed  with  different  interrogatives,  but  Earl 
laughed  and  waved  them  all  away. 

"I  don't  know  what  the  Swami  did,"  he 
said,  "but  if  he  is  like  some  of  his  brothers  I'm 
ready  to  believe  anything.  All  that  I  did,  and 
a  great  deal  that  I  never  thought  of  doing  my- 
self, or  heard  of  anybody  else  doing  on  this 
planet,  was  told  in  your  papers  at  the  time. 
Really,  if  I  had  anything  worth  your  while 
as  a  news  story  I  would  be  glad  to  give  it  to 
you — one  of  these  days  I  may  have,  but  you 
must  excuse  me  now." 

His  manner  was  courteous  but  unmistaka- 
ble, and  turning  away  from  them  he  was  soon 
absorbed  in  conversation  with  the  pretty  girl 
and  his  brother  and  sister.  He  hardly  took  his 
eyes  off  the  former  as  he  recounted  his  adven- 
tures abroad. 

Three  months  previously  he  and  Leonora 
Kimball  had  been  betrothed  in  Vienna,  and  it 
was  agreed  that  they  were  to  be  married  soon 
after  his  arrival  home.  In  a  social  way,  the 
match  met  the  approval  of  New  York's  select 
set,  for  they  belonged  to  equally  wealthy  and 
prominent  families.  The  Earls  had  come  to 
New  York  from  New  England,  two  genera- 
10 


A  Doctor  Returns  From  India 

tions  ago,  and  the  foundation  of  the  family  for- 
tune had  been  laid  in  a  small  block  of  New 
York,  New  Haven  and  Hartford  stock,  which 
had  grown  into  a  huge  block  of  both  stocks  and 
bonds  from  the  various  expansions  of  stock  and 
consolidations  of  property  that  had  meanwhile 
taken  place.  The  Kimballs  had  come  from 
the  Pacific  coast,  where  the  same  alchemist's 
result  had  been  wrought  with  a  block  of  South- 
ern Pacific  Railway  stock.  The  family  tree 
of  the  Earls  had  rooted  itself  into  the  subsoil 
of  real  culture,  while  that  of  the  Kimballs  was 
mostly  displayed  above  ground  with  only  here 
and  there  a  stray  fibre  that  had  sunk  to  any 
depth. 

Leonora  Kimball,  who  at  this  time  was 
slightly  over  twenty-three  years  of  age,  pos- 
sessed a  most  winning  and  gracious  manner — 
a  face  that  might  have  served  as  a  better  model 
for  a  madonna  than  many  of  those  apparently 
used  by  the  old  masters;  a  lithe  and  graceful 
figure  and  an  abundance  of  vivacity  when  do- 
ing the  things  that  pleased  her.  She  had  so 
captivated  John  Earl  from  their  first  meeting 
that  he  had  never  tried  nor  cared  to  analyze 
her.  Indeed,  had  he  so  wished,  he  would  have 
11 


An  American  Suffragette 

found  it  a  difficult  undertaking,  for  he  was 
too  content  with  the  pleasure  he  felt  in  her 
presence  to  care  to  question  it. 

Dr.  Earl  had  taken  infinite  pains  to  search 
the  world  for  the  sources  of  disease  and  its 
prevention  and  cure.  He  had  delved  deeply 
into  the  mysteries  of  mental  and  spiritual 
therapeutics,  and  had  closely  studied  the  in- 
fluences surrounding  the  origin  of  individual 
human  beings.  But  while  he  had  harnessed 
many  more  or  less  occult  forces  into  scientific 
service  in  treating  invalids,  strangely  enough, 
it  never  occurred  to  him  that  similar  elements 
might  have  an  important  mission  in  determin- 
ing the  natural  affinity  of  those  attracted  by  the 
tenderest  passion  in  the  world,  and  might  do 
much,  if  properly  regarded,  to  render  stable 
that  one-time  sacred  bond  of  the  sexes  known 
as  the  marriage  relation,  which  at  this  time, 
everywhere,  was  resting  upon  such  shifting 
quicksands  of  mismating  as  to  menace  its 
existence. 

"Love  is  of  man's  life  a  thing  apart,"  ap- 
plied with  full  force  to  Dr.  Earl,  and  he  ac- 
cepted his  relations  with  Leonora  Kimball  with 
the  same  confidence  and  light  heart  that  might 
12 


A  Doctor  Returns  From  India 

characterize  the  least  thoughtful  man  on  Man- 
hattan Island.  While  he  had  traveled  many 
thousands  of  miles  and  burned  many  a  mid- 
night lamp  to  ascertain  if  improvement  could 
not  be  made  in  the  prevailing  orthodox  method 
of  treating  disease,  he  blindly  accepted,  as 
millions  of  strong  men  before  him  had  done, 
the  prevailing  orthodox  method  of  selecting  a 
wife. 

In  any  event,  after  the  brother  and  sister 
had  been  left  at  the  Ramsey  mansion  on  upper 
Fifth  Avenue,  he  and  Leonora  proceeded  to 
spend  the  time  from  eleven  to  three  o'clock 
very  much  as  other  lovers  similarly  situated 
would  have  consumed  those  four  hours.  They 
motored  until  one  o'clock,  when  they  went  to 
her  house,  not  far  from  his  sister's  residence, 
where  he  had  luncheon  with  her  and  her  wid- 
owed mother,  and  at  three  o'clock  he  arrived  at 
the  Hotel  Gotham,  where  he  had  engaged 
apartments. 

When  he  stepped  into  his  new  sitting-room 
a  large  photograph  of  Leonora  confronted  him 
on  the  dressing-case,  his  valet  being  a  man  of 
rare  sense  and  tact. 

As  he  looked  into  the  counterfeit  impression 
13 


An  American  Suffragette 

of  the  large  blue  eyes  and  reflected  back  her 
smile  he  declared  to  himself  for  the  twentieth 
time  that  day  that  she  was  the  most  fascinating 
creature  in  the  world. 


CHAPTER  II 

A  MYSTICAL  PARADE 

WHEN  Dr.  Earl  arrived  at  his  hotel  he  no- 
ticed crowds  of  people  gathering  on  the  side- 
walk, and  lining  up  along  the  curbstone  further 
down  the  avenue,  evidently  expecting  a  parade 
of  some  sort.  He  had  dismissed  the  matter 
from  his  mind  and  was  startled  about  an  hour 
later  to  hear  the  tap  of  a  drum  on  the  street, 
then  a  martial  air  by  a  band,  followed  by  the 
clatter  of  horses'  hoofs  and  the  shouts  of  po- 
licemen clearing  the  way.  Throwing  open  a 
window,  he  witnessed  a  sight  that  dazed  him  for 
a  moment,  and  he  wondered  whether  or  not 
he  really  was  in  an  American  city. 

As  if  by  magic,  the  street  was  now  filled  with 
women,  arranging  themselves  in  marching  or- 
der, with  the  shout  of  command  ringing  clear 
upon  the  air,  and  down  Fifth  Avenue  as  far 
as  he  could  see,  other  columns  of  women  were 
forming  to  the  strains  of  military  music  and 
to  the  stirring  echoes  of  fife  and  drum. 
15 


An  American  Suffragette 

He  grabbed  his  hat  and  stick,  and  joined  the 
throng  that  packed  the  sidewalk.  His  six  feet 
of  height  and  his  athletic  training  rendered  him 
good  service  in  ascertaining  where  to  go  and 
making  it  possible  to  get  there.  He  hurried 
along  several  blocks  until  he  reached  what  he 
thought  must  be  the  leading  column  of  the 
march.  Then  he  elbowed  his  way  to  the  curb- 
stone and  took  up  a  position  to  witness  this, 
as  yet,  mysterious  demonstration. 

The  air  was  sharp  for  a  day  late  in  April, 
but  the  sky  was  clear  and  the  sun  shed  occa- 
sional rays  of  splendor  over  some  of  the  lower 
buildings  upon  the  waiting  multitude. 

The  crowd  was  remarkably  quiet.  There 
seemed  to  be  a  spell  over  the  whole  perform- 
ance that  savored  of  some  of  the  wonders  he 
had  so  recently  witnessed  in  India.  There  was 
something  electric  in  the  air  that  brought  with 
it  an  echo  from  some  distant  past  or  a  promise 
for  the  future  which  he  tried  in  vain  to  catch 
and  recognize. 

Finally  the  order,  "Forward,  march!"  was 
given,  and  to  the  air  of  "Marching  Through 
Georgia"  the  first  column  swung  down  the 
Avenue  with  easy  grace  and  in  perfect  step. 

Long  before  the  first  standard  came  near  he 
16 


A  Mystical  Parade 

knew  it  was  a  Woman  Suffrage  parade,  and 
before  he  could  get  a  view  of  the  women  carry- 
ing it,  he  read  the  inscription  on  the  banner: 

Forward  out  of  Error, 

Leave  behind  the  night ; 
Forward  through  the  darkness, 

Forward  into  Light. 

Then  the  standard  bearers  were  opposite  him. 
The  one  nearest  to  him  was  an  exceedingly 
pretty  young  woman,  as  was  also  the  second 
one,  but  as  his  eyes  rested  upon  the  one  farthest 
away  he  gave  a  startled  exclamation  that  at- 
tracted the  attention  of  those  around  him. 

"My  mystery!  Again  she  has  dropped  from 
the  clouds!"  The  object  of  his  interest  was  a 
tall  young  woman,  scarcely  more  than  twenty- 
five  years  of  age,  gowned  in  white  cloth  with 
black  trimmings,  with  a  white  hat  turned 
straight  up  on  the  left  side  and  lined  in  black. 
She  showed  grace  and  energy  in  every  move- 
ment and  intellect  and  force  in  every  glance. 

Her  large,  sapphire-blue  eyes  gleamed  with 
the  intensity  of  her  feelings,  and  the  touches 
of  bronze  hair  that  could  be  seen  beneath  her 
hat  gave  evidence  of  the  vivacious  character  of 
her  life. 

17 


An  American  SwfffMgette 

As  she  marched  with  queenly  grace  at  the 
head  of  this  mighty  host  of  six  thousand  Amer- 
ican women,  Dr.  Earl  had  visions  of  the  reality 
of  the  myth  or  history,  whichever  it  may  be,  of 
Semiramis  invading  Assyria  and  the  Amazons 
conquering  Asia. 

The  entire  line  of  march  was  no  doubt  inter- 
esting, but  the  head  of  the  column  was  absorb- 
ing to  our  hero,  so  block  after  block  he  marched 
as  nearly  abreast  of  the  banner  on  the  sidewalk 
as  a  dense  crowd  would  permit  him,  and  when 
the  column  broke  ranks  at  Union  Square  he 
was  there  to  witness  it. 

No  sooner  did  the  mysterious  banner  bearer 
quit  the  march  than  she  rushed  to  the  custodian 
of  the  posters,  and,  gathering  an  armful,  she 
coaxed,  or  with  mock  heroics  terrorized,  every 
person  she  approached  into  buying  one  for  "the 
good  of  the  Cause!" 

Earl  was  certain  his  heart  would  never  beat 
again  when  she  asked  him  in  deep,  musical 
tones  to  "Please  buy  one  for  the  Cause."  He 
did  so,  and  loitered  around  watching  her  a  few 
moments  longer,  then  started  up  Broadway. 

When  he  swung  into  Fifth  Avenue  he  was 
impressed  again,  as  he  had  been  when  he  came 
from  the  boat,  with  the  changed  atmosphere 
18 


A  Mystical  Parade 

of  the  street.  He  had  always  read  the  mood 
of  New  York  in  its  silent  reflection  in  this  ex- 
pressive part  of  the  city's  physiognomy.  Long 
ago,  he  had  discovered  that  Fifth  Avenue 
smiles  or  weeps,  applauds  or  hisses,  effervesces 
with  enthusiasm  or  gazes  somberly  like  the 
image  of  despair,  revels  in  fervent  expressions 
of  patriotism  or  looks  with  gloomy  distrust 
upon  public  affairs — all  according  to  the  mood 
of  the  dominant  portion  of  New  York's  popu- 
lation— those  who  control  the  destinies  of  the 
huge  private  enterprises  that  are  the  marvel  of 
the  age,  and  the  management  of  which  means 
so  much  in  the  way  of  industrial  slavery  or 
economic  freedom  to  the  American  people. 

This  evening  there  was  a  note  of  more  seri- 
ousness in  the  air  than  he  had  ever  before  wit- 
nessed on  this  gay  thoroughfare.  The  rush  of 
automobiles  and  taxicabs  and  carriages  with 
beautifully  gowned  women  and  fine-looking 
men  as  occupants  was  as  great  as  ever;  the 
perfectly  groomed  New  York  woman  on  the 
sidewalk,  with  figure  and  carriage  such  as  out- 
classes the  women  of  every  other  large  city  in 
the  world,  was  there  in  numbers  quite  as  great 
as  formerly;  the  Western  woman,  who  had 
come  on  to  take  New  York  by  storm,  or  who 
19 


An  American  Suffragette 

imagined  the  acme  of  human  existence  was  in 
New  York  cafe  life,  with  all  of  its  vulgar  dis- 
play and  raucous  manners,  was  abundantly  in 
evidence. 

But  over  the  entire  concourse  there  appeared 
to  drift  an  atmosphere  of  the  spiritual,  which 
lifted  them  from  the  plane  of  the  Fifth  Avenue 
crowd  of  a  year  and  a  half  before,  and  im- 
pressed him  in  the  same  manner  that  he  had 
been  impressed  in  the  far  East  by  adepts  when 
they  gave  public  demonstrations  of  their 
powers,  or  conversed  with  their  Chelae  without 
the  medium  of  written  or  spoken  language. 

When  he  left  America  the  woman  suffrage 
movement  in  New  York  was  a  subject  of  more 
or  less  ridicule;  a  few  wealthy  women  had  be- 
gun to  identify  themselves  with  it,  but  they 
were  called  "faddists"  and  their  efforts  were 
not  taken  seriously.  It  was  apparent  now  that 
the  suffrage  cause  had  been  given  the  impetus 
of  the  world-wide  movement  that  was  reaching 
the  women  of  all  countries,  and  had  changed 
from  a  gospel  of  tracts  to  a  militant  crusade 
for  their  share  of  the  duties  and  responsibilities 
of  life  and  the  power  properly  to  discharge 
them.  Never  had  he  seen  so  many  of  the  real 
leaders  of  New  York  society  engaged  in  any 
20 


A  Mystical  Parade 

work,  charitable  or  otherwise,  as  had  taken  part 
in  this  parade,  marching  on  foot  the  full  two 
miles,  and  often  side  by  side  with  the  working- 
women  of  the  city. 

He  had  once  seen  a  painting  of  the  Maid  of 
Orleans  in  a  foreign  gallery  that  carried  so 
much  of  spiritual  earnestness  that  he  felt  that 
he  could  appreciate  how  easy  it  was  for  the 
French  army  instinctively  to  follow  her  lead, 
and  how  much  easier  it  was  for  the  poor  dupes 
of  ignorance  and  superstition  to  believe  that 
this  overmastering  spiritual  nature  was  the 
product  of  witchcraft. 

Absorbing  though  these  thoughts  were,  they 
did  not  exclude  another  train  which  had  to  do 
with  the  mysterious  banner  bearer,  and  as  he 
entered  his  hotel  he  clenched  his  right  hand 
suddenly  and  muttered  to  himself,  "I  must 
dismiss  her  from  my  thoughts." 


21 


CHAPTER   III 

THE  MYSTERIOUS  YOUNG  WOMAN 

DR.  EARL  took  a  late  dinner  at  his  sister's 
house,  after  having  spent  an  hour  with  his 
fiancee  on  the  way.  There  were  just  the  four 
of  them  at  table,  his  sister  and  her  husband, 
his  brother  and  himself. 

His  sister  was  the  oldest  member  of  his 
family,  which  comprised  but  the  three  of  them, 
his  father  and  mother  having  died  some  years 
before. 

During  the  college  days  of  both  himself  and 
his  brother,  who  was  two  years  his  junior,  his 
sister  had  assumed  the  role  of  a  mother  to  them, 
and  right  devotedly  had  she  filled  the  part.  She 
had  been  more  of  a  "pal"  to  them  than  any- 
thing else,  and  some  years'  residence  in  Eng- 
land during  her  schooldays  had  broadened  her 
vision  of  the  true  meaning  and  value  of  this 
relation  between  those  of  opposite  sex  and  par- 
ticularly between  brother  and  sister. 


The  Mysterious  Young  Woman 

She  possessed  now,  as  always,  the  unbounded 
respect  and  confidence  of  these  two  young  men 
of  thoroughly  dissimilar  character  and  temper- 
ament, and  she  was  the  repository  of  the  sacred 
secrets  of  each  of  them,  which  she  was  warned 
she  must  never  betray  to  the  other.  And  she 
never  did. 

Eight  years  previous  to  these  occurrences, 
she  had  married  George  Ramsey,  President 
of  the  Gotham  Trust  Company,  which  insti- 
tution had  recently  absorbed  half  a  dozen 
weaker  concerns  doing  a  similar  business,  and 
more  recently  had  taken  over  from  the  New 
York  bankers,  who  were  stockholders  in  the 
trust  company,  the  handling  of  most  of  the 
public  utility  securities  that  were  floated  in  this 
country.  But  George  Ramsey  was  not  the 
pretentious  pawnbroker  in  spirit  and  manner 
that  so  often  presides  over  the  destinies  of 
American  banks,  but  he  was  a  philosophical 
financier  who  understood  perfectly  the  strength 
and  weakness  of  the  system  under  which  he 
worked,  and  who,  while  he  wondered  at  the 
supine  idiocy  of  the  people  that  would  permit 
of  the  prevailing  Dick  Turpin  methods  of  high 
finance,  never  took  his  eye  from  the  horizon 
of  public  action,  where  daily  he  expected  to  see 
23 


An  American  Suffragette 

"the  cloud  no  bigger  than  a  man's  hand"  that 
was  to  expand  into  the  storm  that  would  engulf 
these  and  other  long  permitted  public  ills. 

Many  times  recently  he  had  sounded  the 
alarm  of  the  dangers  attending  recapitalization 
of  properties  that  already  bore  a  heavy  weight 
of  watered  securities,  but  his  colleagues  had 
laughed  at  what  they  termed  his  fears,  and  had 
attempted  to  reassure  him  of  their  complete 
possession  of  the  departments  of  government 
that  controlled  such  matters.  Bred  to  the 
banking  business,  he  had  no  thought  of  trans- 
ferring his  abilities  and  energies  to  the  realm 
of  statesmanship,  but  in  the  sanctum  of  his 
own  home  he  would  often  pour  forth  his  dis- 
gust with,  and  his  fear  of,  such  methods,  to  the 
tall,  clear-eyed,  clear-brained  and  beautiful 
woman  from  whom  John  and  Frank  Earl  were 
wont  to  seek  advice  in  their  perplexities.  And 
from  her  he  always  received  valuable  sugges- 
tions, a  keener  insight  into  the  motives  of  men, 
a  broader,  more  humane  view-point,  and  withal 
a  firmness  to  set  himself,  in  part,  where  the 
law  of  the  land  should  have  been  set  wholly, 
as  a  barrier  against  the  worst  of  these  public 
depredations. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  George  Ramsey  were  the  same 
24 


The  Mysterious  Young  Woman 

lovers  now  that  they  were  during  their  honey- 
moon. In  the  crowded  ballroom,  at  the  opera, 
in  the  automobile  after  the  harassing  cares  of 
the  day,  on  land  or  sea,  he  was  always  the  ad- 
miring and  devoted  attendant,  and  gave  ex- 
pression to  his  feelings  in  a  variety  of  new  and 
interesting  ways.  It  was  evident  that  they  had 
not  run  counter  to  the  influence  of  the  stars 
in  waiting  for  a  natural  affinity.  In  their  home 
they  entered  into  the  spirit  of  whatever  was 
borne  to  them  by  their  guests.  With  scholars 
and  philosophers  they  held  their  own  in  ab- 
struse and  abstract  discussions.  With  musi- 
cians and  music  lovers  they  were  at  ease,  for 
both  played  and  sang  with  more  than  amateur 
skill.  With  young  people  bent  on  a  frolic, 
they  could  be  the  gayest  of  the  party.  Their 
outlook  upon  life  was  always  across  green 
meadows  or  perfectly  kept  beds  of  beautiful 
flowers. 

Every  guest  found  ready  sympathy  for 
whatever  was  nearest  and  dearest  to  him,  and 
went  away  convinced  that  he  had  never  rightly 
understood  his  own  hobby  before. 

In  this  atmosphere,  and  at  table  with  this 
couple,  John  and  Frank  Earl  seated  them- 
selves at  eight  o'clock  for  dinner. 
25 


An  American  Suffragette 

It  would  be  difficult  to  imagine  two  broth- 
ers more  widely  separated  in  physical  and 
mental  characteristics.  John  was  tall,  athletic, 
with  dark  hair,  large,  dreamy  brown  eyes,  per- 
fect poise,  a  silent  and  dignified  bearing  that 
easily  commanded  attention  when  he  spoke,  a 
low,  musical  voice  and  an  exceedingly  strong 
and  graceful  hand. 

Frank  was  of  medium  height,  spare  of  fig- 
ure, with  light  hair,  penetrating  blue  eyes,  re- 
silient voice,  quick  and  nervous  of  speech,  with 
large  hands  and  feet,  and  not  a  shadow  of  dig- 
nity in  his  bearing. 

The  one  personified  reflection ;  the  other  ac- 
tion. In  the  eyes  of  one  appeared  the  dreams 
of  centuries;  beaming  from  the  eyes  of  the 
other  was  the  fun  of  the  ages. 

"Did  any  of  you  people,  aside  from  Jack, 
see  the  suffragette  parade  to-day?"  asked 
Frank,  with  laughing  eyes  fixed  upon  his 
brother. 

"I — how  do  you  know  I  saw  it?"  asked  John, 
and  his  confused  manner  brought  "Eh,  Jack?" 
from  the  other  two. 

"It's  all  right,  Jack;  I  won't  tell  Leonora, 
but  how  jealous  she  would  be  if  she  could  have 
seen  you  following  the  banner  carried  by  those 
26 


The  Mysterious  Young  Woman 

three  pretty  girls,"  answered  Frank.  "Why,  I 
followed  you  a  dozen  blocks  myself,  al- 
most touching  you  the  whole  time,  just  to  see 
which  one  of  the  three  girls  was  making  you 
join  the  parade.  The  next  time  get  right  out 
into  the  street,  old  man,  and  don't  block  the 
view  of  us  spectators,  for  you  know  you  were 
a  part  of  that  parade  to-day,  in  mind  at  least." 

The  absurdity  of  the  scene  as  depicted  by 
Frank  made  even  John  throw  back  his  head 
and  join  in  the  unrestrained  laughter  of  the 
others. 

"I  was  in  the  Waldorf-Astoria  at  a  tea-table 
near  the  window  when  the  head  of  the  column 
came  in  view.  I,  too,  liked  the  looks  of  those 
pretty  girls  carrying  the  banner,  but  before  I 
could  decide  which  one  I  liked  best,  my  dearly 
beloved  brother  hove  in  sight,  with  eyes  glued 
on  the  third  one,  wandering  down  the  Avenue 
like  either  a  slow-hatching  lunatic  or  a  good 
subject  for  a  hypnotist.  I  knew  Jack  would 
need  me  in  New  York  to  steer  him  right  until 
all  that  Indian  mysticism  gets  out  of  his  sys- 
tem, and  that  is  the  reason  I  left  the  delights 
of  the  wilds  for  the  barbarism  of  the  city. 
Well,  I  excused  myself  and  hurried  out  to  take 
possession  of  Jack,  but  when  I  got  close  to  him 
271 


An  American  Suffragette 

and  was  just  about  to  slap  him  on  the  shoulder, 
I  followed  his  eyes — and  for  the  life  of  me,  I 
couldn't  touch  him!" 

Here  Frank's  tone  became  half  serious  and 
his  changed  manner  hushed  the  laughter  of  the 
others.  "I  have  always  ridiculed  the  idea  of 
hypnotism  and  in  every  experiment  where  I 
have  been  present  I  have  set  myself  to  disprove 
its  effects.  But  candidly,  folks,  I  was  hypno- 
tized. Unconsciously  I  followed  that  parade  a 
whole  dozen  blocks  myself,  and  when  I  finally 
came  out  of  the  trance,  or  whatever  it  was,  and 
started  back  to  the  hotel,  the  entire  atmosphere 
seemed  filled  with  some  kind  of  uncanny  dope. 
I  never  witnessed  such  contagious  energy  and 
earnestness,  and  every  step  emanated  spiritual 
sparks  that  blinded  my  eyes  and  took  posses- 
sion of  my  faculties.  Who  is  she,  Jack?" 

"That  is  what  I  want  to  know.  I  call  her  my 
'Mystery.'  One  day  while  I  was  in  London 
and  near  Trafalgar  Square  I  saw  a  demonstra- 
tion of  women  down  toward  the  parliament 
buildings.  I  went  that  way  to  see  what  was 
up  and  soon  discovered  that  it  was  a  body  of 
English  suffragettes  making  an  attempt  to 
exercise  their  claimed  right  to  petition  parlia- 
ment. As  usual,  the  demonstration  was  more 
28 


The  Mysterious  Young  Woman 

or  less  strenuous  and  the  police  interfered. 
When  I  got  close  enough  to  identify  them,  I 
saw  my  'Mystery'  in  the  front  ranks,  exhorting 
the  women,  protesting  and  pleading  with  the 
policemen,  and  gradually  getting  nearer  and 
nearer  the  parliament  buildings  until  they  had 
almost  reached  one  of  the  entrances.  It  looked 
very  much  as  if  they  might  get  entirely  in  and 
vindicate  their  claim,  but  just  at  that  moment 
a  fresh  squad  of  police  arrived  under  an  officer 
superior  to  any  present,  and  ordered  the  arrest 
of  the  leaders.  My  'Mystery'  was  the  first  ar- 
rested. It  was  then  that  I  discovered  that  she 
was  an  American  girl.  The  speech  she  deliv- 
ered to  those  police  officers  on  human  rights 
and  human  liberties  and  women's  rights  and 
women's  liberties  is  worthy  a  place  among  the 
world's  great  orations.  They  took  her  and  the 
rest  of  them  away,  but  I  noticed  that  they 
treated  her  with  marked  respect.  I  don't  think 
any  of  them  were  jailed  on  that  occasion,  but 
she  defied  them  to  jail  her.  The  next  time  I 
saw  her  was  at  the  Grand  Opera  House  in 
Paris,  two  months  later.  She  was  with  some 
friends  in  an  adjoining  stall.  It  was  a  gala 
performance  for  the  benefit  of  the  flood 
sufferers  and  the  most  noted  singers  in 
29 


An  American  Suffragette 

the  world  had  volunteered  their  services,  and 
single  acts  from  a  number  of  operas  were 
given.  It  was  difficult  to  believe  that  this  beau- 
tiful, stylish,  richly-gowned  girl  was  the  one 
I  saw  arrested  in  a  suffrage  disturbance  on 
the  streets  of  London.  Throughout  the  per- 
formance I  watched  her  closely,  and  her  ex- 
pressive face  reflected  the  emotion  of  every 
leading  role.  She  partook  of  the  abandon  of  the 
gayer  airs  in  "Carmen,"  and  her  cheeks  were 
flooded  with  tears  at  the  misfortunes  of  Mar- 
guerite in  "Faust."  I  was  dying  to  know  who 
she  was,  but  I  was  with  foreign  surgeons,  and 
saw  no  Americans  that  I  knew.  To-day  is  the 
first  time  I  have  seen  her  since.  Who  is  she, 
Hilda?"  eagerly  he  asked  of  his  sister. 

"You  and  Frank  give  me  a  lot  of  exclama- 
tion points,  with  a  vivid  description  of  how  the 
atmosphere  affected  you,  and  then  want  me 
to  name  a  vision  for  you.  Please  describe  the 
physical  girl,  leaving  out  all  adjectives,  mys- 
tical pieces  of  air,  et  cetera,  and  perhaps  I  can 
tell  who  she  is." 

Jack  described  the  girl  in  the  parade,  some- 
what repressing  his  enthusiasm  under  Frank's 
amused  scrutiny. 

"I  don't  wonder  at  your  captivation.  That 
30 


The  Mysterious  Young  Woman 

is  Silvia  Holland,  one  rich  American  girl  who 
is  determined  to  justify  her  existence,  live  a 
life  that  is  worth  while,  and  demonstrate  the 
ability  of  women  to  be  economically  independ- 
ent, for  although  her  father  has  a  half-dozen 
city,  country  and  resort  residences,  she  insists 
in  maintaining  at  her  own  expense  a  modest 
apartment  in  the  Whittier  Studios,  and  keeps 
up  her  own  country  home  on  the  Hudson  at 
Nutwood.  Just  now  her  parents  are  on  a  trip 
around  the  world.  You  know  she  is  a  gradu- 
ate of  the  law  school  at  Columbia  and  was 
admitted  to  practice  a  few  months  ago.  You 
should  thank  your  stars,  Jack,  that  it  is  not 
the  medical  profession  she  is  seeking  to  enter, 
or  the  dry  bones  there  would  be  worse  shaken 
up  than  they  will  be  by  your  new  theories,  and 
you  would  have  a  formidable  rival." 

"She  is  not  the  daughter  of  John  J.  Hol- 
land, the  steel  magnate?"  he  inquired. 

"Yes,  his  daughter  and  only  child." 

"Whew!  There  is  hope  of  the  American 
woman  after  all.  There  certainly  is  a  big  social 
revolution  on  in  America,"  and  Jack  arose 
with  the  others  to  go  into  the  library  for  coffee. 

"It  might  interest  you  young  men  to  know 
that  these  suffragists  are  to  finish  their  day's 
31 


An  American  Suffragette 

work  with  a  ball  and  a  bazaar  to-night,  and  I 
have  tickets  for  a  box,"  suggested  Hilda. 

"Of  course  Jack  can't  go,  but  I  shall  be  de- 
lighted to  bask  in  the  smiles  of  this  modern 
Semiramis  a  while,"  answered  Frank.  "Then, 
too,"  he  added,  "she  may  convert  me  to  suf- 
frage, which  living  in  Colorado  among  suffra- 
gists for  two  years  has  failed  to  do." 

"Oh,  that  is  because  you  are  looking  at  the 
matter  through  a  railroad  attorney's  eyes; 
long  ago  it  was  truly  written  that  'no  man  can 
serve  two  masters,'  and  your  railroad  employ- 
ment is  your  master  just  now,"  answered  his 
sister. 

"I  have  heard  reports  that  indicate  that 
woman's  suffrage  in  Colorado  is  apt  quite  soon 
to  cause  not  only  you  railroad  lawyers  but  our 
holders  of  railroad  securities  some  concern 
about  the  quantity  of  water  we  inject  into  any 
one  issue  of  stocks  and  bonds,"  laughingly 
suggested  Mr.  Ramsey. 

"Come,  gentlemen,  your  charming  Amazon 
will  not  stay  up  all  night,  and  it  is  ten-thirty 
now,"  called  Hilda,  who  had  already  garbed 
herself  for  the  automobile. 


CHAPTER  IV 

A  SUFFRAGE  BAZAAR  AND  BALL 

A  SUFFRAGE  bazaar  does  not  differ  essen- 
tially from  the  same  iniquity  under  other  aus- 
pices. There  are  the  same  useless  articles  for 
sale  and  the  same  aggressive  methods  of  dis- 
posing of  them;  the  same  varieties  of  fancy 
work,  knit,  embroidered,  drawn,  quartered  and 
crocheted;  the  same  display  of  canned  goods 
and  home-made  jellies  and  feminine  apparel; 
the  same  raffles  and  "drawings"  and  "chances" 
by  which  churches  have  long  conducted  their 
clerical  lotteries;  the  same  side-shows  and  the 
same  appeal  to  the  social  world  to  come  and 
mingle  with  the  "high-brows"  and  be  fashion- 
ably robbed. 

Only  in  this  instance  far  more  ingenuity  had 
been  displayed  in  the  number  and  nature  of 
the  side  attractions.  There  were  guessing  ma- 
chines where  the  cocksure  were  reduced  to 
humbleness  of  mind  by  their  failures  to  state 
33 


An  American  Suffragette 

accurately  the  number  of  women  voting  in  the 
world  or  some  section  thereof;  the  number  of 
countries  that  have  recently  swung  into  line  in 
the  woman  movement;  the  number  of  subjects 
reigned  over  by  women,  and  similar  questions, 
all  of  which  proved  "extra  hazardous"  to  most 
of  the  guessers.  Many  of  them  did  not  even 
know  what  the  five  stars  on  the  suffrage  flag 
indicated. 

They  had  a  row  of  Chinese  examination 
booths,  in  which  persons  wishing  a  certificate  of 
"Efficient  Citizenship"  were  given  blanks  to 
fill  out,  in  which  they  revealed  their  knowl- 
edge, or  their  crass  ignorance,  of  conditions  in 
various  parts  of  their  own  country.  Mrs. 
Jarley  conducted  a  wax-works  performance, 
and  there  was  a  moving-picture  show  in  which 
Mrs.  Cornelia  Gracchus,  the  favorite  example 
of  the  "Aritis,"  was  shown  lecturing  in  the 
Forum  on  medicine  to  grave  and  reverend 
seigneurs,  Joan  of  Arc  leading  her  troops,  and 
Florence  Nightingale  bending  over  the  sick 
and  wounded. 

An  educated  pig  told  the  uneducated  person 

in  how  many  States  women  have  full  suffrage, 

and  which  they  are ;  where  suffrage  campaigns 

are  pending,  and  the  names  of  the  distin- 

34 


A  Suffrage  Bazaar  and  Ball 

guished  Americans  who  have  gone  on  record 
in  favor  of  this  reform.  A  Street  of  All  Na- 
tions showed  the  onward  march,  all  the  way 
from  the  women  of  Washington  casting  their 
"recall"  ballots  to  the  women  of  China  unbind- 
ing their  feet,  and  Turkish  ladies  tearing  their 
veils  into  tatters. 

Dancing  was  going  on  in  an  adjoining  room, 
but  the  crowd  was  so  great  that  it  was  impos- 
sible to  even  locate  Jack's  "Mystery,"  so  Frank 
turned  his  attention  to  a  row  of  booths,  draped 
in  black,  with  silver  astrological  symbols, 
palmist  signs  and  two  flaming  aces  of  hearts 
and  diamonds,  where  past,  present  and  future 
were  revealed  at  very  reasonable  prices — con- 
sidering. "Me  for  the  astrologist,"  he  said. 
"Jack,  go  in  at  the  sign  of  the  glowing  heart 
and  find  out  whether  Venus  is  going  to  be  good 
to  you,  and  then  we  can  swap  experiences." 

"I  think  I'll  try  the  palmist,"  Jack  replied. 
"If  it's  even  moderately  well  done  it  is  inter- 
esting," and  the  two  brothers  disappeared  into 
the  cavelike  apertures  before  them.  Frank's 
experience  seemed  to  be  highly  satisfactory, 
for  he  reappeared  grinning  cheerfully.  Per- 
haps he  had  cause,  but  he  did  not  reveal  it,  and 
when  his  brother  came  forth  from  the  clutches 
35 


An  American  Suffragette 

of  the  sorceress,  he  insisted  that  he  should  have 
his  horoscope  cast. 

As  there  seemed  no  hope  of  finding  the  lady 
they  sought  until  the  crowd  should  have 
thinned  a  little,  Jack  laughed  and  entered  the 
silver-spangled  tent.  The  seeress  was  gowned 
in  white,  with  silver  chains  and  bracelets  and 
girdle,  and  a  long  white  veil  completely  en- 
veloped her  except  the  face,  and  this  was  con- 
cealed by  her  yashmak  up  to  her  mocking  gray 
eyes,  with  their  dark,  level  brows.  There  was 
something  in  her  eyes  that  attracted  Jack,  and 
made  him  believe  in  her  uncanny  powers  quite 
against  his  will,  and  even  while  he  told  him- 
self that  this  was  but  the  foolishness  of  the 
hour.  He  gave  her  the  necessary  data,  and 
she  consulted  her  charts,  and  gave  him  a  rapid 
and  wonderfully  correct  delineation  of  his 
character,  "a  nature  which  combines  the  char- 
acteristics of  Scorpio  with  some  of  those  of 
Sagitarrius,  as  is  the  case,"  she  explained 
gravely,  "with  persons  born  near  the  cusp," 
a  term  which  produced  no  impression  upon  his 
mind,  though  he  said,  "Oh,  indeed,"  politely. 
She  made  some  cabalistic  marks  on  a  square  of 
paper  and  turned  to  him  with  a  somewhat 
startled  expression,  which  faded  at  once,  and 
36 


A  Suffrage  Bazaar  and  Ball 

the  mocking  eyes  looked  full  into  his  as  she 
went  on. 

"You  do  not  believe  in  anything  I  am  telling 
you,  and  therefore  I  shall  speak  quite  frankly, 
certain  that  you  will  be  neither  cast  down  nor 
elated  by  anything  I  can  say.  I  think  you  are 
a  physician ;  if  not  you  ought  to  be ;  you  seem 
to  have  come  from  afar,  and  to  be  about  to 
begin  a  new  phase  in  your  life.  It  is  well  that 
you  have  two  of  the  greatest  of  the  planets, 
Mars  and  Jupiter,  as  controlling  influences, 
for  you  will  need  them,  and  that  very  soon. 
You  are  at  this  moment  in  greater  danger  than 
ever  before  has  been  your  lot." 

Jack  could  not  repress  a  laugh.  With  youth, 
health,  ability  and  love  he  felt  that  it  would 
take  more  than  a  stray  comet  to  turn  the  cur- 
rents of  his  life  awry.  But  the  woman  did  not 
smile;  he  could  see  that  much  through  the 
gauzy  yashmak,  and  her  eyes  grew  grave  and 
her  forehead  contracted. 

"I  am  glad  you  don't  believe  it,"  she  said, 
"because  I  should  not  like  to  tell  you  what  I 
see  if  you  did;  before  morning  you  will  know 
whether  it  is  all  the  foolishness  you  think  it." 

He  apologized.  "I'm  immensely  inter- 
ested," he  said,  "but  I  didn't  know  any  one  re- 
37 


An  American  Suffragette 

garded  this  sort  of  thing  seriously.  So  far  as 
you've  gone  you've  hit  me  off  very  well,  and  I 
don't  mind  telling  you  that  I  am  a  physician, 
and  I'm  just  back  from  the  far  East." 

"Thank  you,"  she  said  gravely.  "Have  you 
ever  heard  that  if  a  man  has  made  love  to  a 
girl  under  the  constellation  of  Cassiopeia  he 
should  not  marry  until  he  has  also  made  love 
under  the  Southern  Cross?  There  is  a  con- 
junction of  malign  planets  at  this  time;  they 
threaten  your  happiness  through  love,  through 
hate,  through  accident.  If  you  have  become 
interested  in  any  person  born  under  Saturn, 
that  is  between  the  twenty-first  of  December 
and  the  twentieth  of  January,  particularly 
about  the  seventh  of  January,  you  should  cer- 
tainly take  time  to  consider  carefully,  for  there 
is  nothing  but  wretchedness  and  misunder- 
standing in  such  an  alliance;  there  may  be 
much  that  is  attractive  on  the  surface,  but  you 
will  find  a  complete  lack  of  harmony,  of  simi- 
larity of  tastes  and  ambition  that  would  leave 
you  forever  alone,  and  there  is  much  selfishness 
and  stubborness  of  will.  Saturn  and  Scorpio 
are  not  good  marital  allies."  He  gave  her  a 
searching  glance,  for  the  seventh  of  January 
38 


A  Suffrage  Bazaar  and  Ball 

was  Leonora's  birthday,  but  her  face  was 
quite  inscrutable. 

"There  is  something  here  I  do  not  under- 
stand; this  accident  does  not  happen  to  you, 
nor  to  any  one  near  you,  yet  it  has  a  lasting 

and  a  terrible  effect  upon  your  life "  she 

shuddered  and  pushed  the  charts  away  from 
her.  "I  will  not  tell  you  any  more,"  she  said, 
"but  I  wonder  whether  you  would  do  me  the 
favor  of  giving  me  your  name  and  address.  I 
want  to  cast  your  horoscope  carefully,  and  I 
will  send  you  the  chart." 

He  thanked  her  and  wrote  down  his  name 
as  requested,  somewhat  impressed  in  spite  of 
himself.  As  he  rose  to  go  she  stood  also  and 
lifted  her  hand  as  if  she  would  have  drawn  him 
back,  then  let  it  drop  heavily.  If  it  was  a 
piece  of  acting,  he  told  himself  it  was  perfectly 
done.  "Do  be  careful  for  the  next  twenty- four 
hours,"  she  said,  "and  beware  of  the  evil  that 
may  come  out  of  good." 

That  last  Delphic  utterance  stamped  the 
whole  affair  as  a  clever  piece  of  mind-reading, 
guesswork  and  acting,  and,  somewhat  annoyed 
that  he  should  have  been  hoaxed  even  for  a 
moment,  Jack  withdrew. 

The  hour  was  growing  late  and  the  crowd 


An  American  Suffragette 

dispersing  when  they  turned  from  the  fortune- 
telling  booths  and  entered  the  ballroom,  and 
presently  Jack  said  to  his  sister,  "There  she  is; 
the  one  in  the  green  gown." 

"Yes,  that  is  Silvia  Holland.  What  a 
superb  dancer,  and  how  democratic !  The  man 
she  is  dancing  with  is  at  the  head  of  one  of 
the  labor  organizations  that  is  championing 
woman's  suffrage.  Come,  Jack,  let  us  have  a 
whirl,  as  of  old,  and  I  will  then  bring  your 
'Mystery'  over  to  the  box." 

In  a  moment  they  were  in  the  midst  of  the 
waltz,  and  at  its  close  Hilda  had  so  managed 
that  they  were  near  Miss  Holland.  Stepping 
up  to  her  on  Jack's  arm  she  presented  her 
brother,  and,  accepting  Hilda's  invitation,  Miss 
Holland  joined  their  party. 

"Did  I  not  see  you  a  year  ago  on  the  streets 
in  London,  the  time  I  was  arrested?"  she 
naively  asked  Jack. 

"Yes,  but  you  were  very  busy.  How  in  the 
world  could  you  remember  me?" 

"Don't  be  flattered  by  the  apparent  compli- 
ment. While  I  was  delivering  my  little  speech 
to  the  police  I  noted  how  closely  you  followed 
me  and  that  you  were  the  only  American 
around,  and  I  had  determined  to  appeal  to  you 
40 


A  Suffrage  Bazaar  and  Ball 

for  assistance  if  they  undertook  to  jail  the 
feeble  old  woman  who  was  with  us.  They 
didn't  disturb  her,  and  so  you  were  not  called 
upon,  but  you  see  how  near  you  came  to  being 
a  militant  English  suffragette  and  perhaps  a 
prisoner  for  thirty  days,"  she  said,  half  seri- 
ously and  half  smilingly. 

"The  word  of  command  would  have  made 
me  both,"  he  answered,  with  so  much  emphasis 
that  Frank  broke  into  the  conversation  with,  "I 
wonder  if  the  open  door  of  an  English  jail 
would  convert  me?" 

"That  would  depend  upon  who  was  direct- 
ing your  footsteps  toward  the  jail,"  suggested 
his  brother-in-law. 

"Not  at  all ;  I  think  I  am  hopeless  after  hav- 
ing heard  so  much  of  the  theoretical  benefits 
of  suffrage  and  seen  the  utter  lack  of  effect  in 
Colorado,  where  I  live." 

Silvia  Holland  turned  her  great,  intense 
eyes  upon  him.  They  were  glowing,  and  he 
felt  the  same  fascination  he  had  experienced 
in  the  afternoon. 

"You  from  Colorado  and  talk  this  way!"  she 

said  in  amazement.     "Surely  you  are  jesting. 

Take  the  effect  on  the  polling  places  alone. 

Compare  those  of  New  York  with  those  of 

41 


An  American  Suffragette 

Denver,  and  I  have  seen  them  in  full  operation 
in  both  places.  In  the  first  is  the  atmosphere 
of  barrooms;  in  the  second  the  manners  and 
air  of  drawing-rooms.  If  I  were  a  Colorado 
man  I  should  be  proud  of  the  result  upon  Col- 
orado women  of  their  responsibility  in  citizen- 
ship. I  know  women  of  all  nationalities,  but 
I  know  none  where  the  average  of  intelligence 
or  womanly  grace  and  real  accomplishments 
are  greater  than  with  your  Colorado  women." 

"I  am  a  railroad  attorney,  sent  out  by  the 
owners  of  some  of  the  lines  traversing  Colorado 
to  look  after  their  interests,"  he  answered.  "It 
is  possible  that  my  conclusions  have  been  in- 
fluenced by  my  occupation.  I  am  prepared  to 
admit  that.  But  I  have  rather  old-fashioned 
notions  in  relation  to  the  proper  place  for 
women  being  in  the  home  and  not  in  politics." 

"Oh,  you  American  professional  men,  par- 
ticularly you  corporation  lawyers" — she  was 
smiling  now.  "You  might  as  well  be  living  in 
the  middle  ages,  for  you  take  no  note  of  the 
tremendous  revolution  that  is  going  on  all 
around  you.  What  we  call  politics  is  in  reality 
government,  and  home  is  the  basis  of  all  good 
government,  and  government  to  serve  its  legiti- 
mate aim  in  a  democracy  must  reflect  the  senti- 
42 


A  Suffrage  Bazaar  and  Ball 

ments  of  all  the  members  of  the  society  that 
created  it,  women  as  well  as  men,  and  the 
higher  the  aspirations  of  society  the  higher  the 
purposes  of  government." 

The  others  were  enjoying  this  little  scene. 
"Bravo,  bravo,  Silvia!"  exclaimed  Hilda.  "Do 
make  a  convert  of  him!" 

"You  know,"  said  Miss  Holland,  and  she 
put  as  much  sarcasm  in  her  tone  as  possible 
without  leaving  a  sting,  "that  this  thing  called 
government  only  needs  a  good  house-cleaning 
and  the  application  of  a  few  vermin  extin- 
guishers, such  as  every  good  housekeeper 
knows  how  to  administer,  to  make  this  country 
a  congenial  habitation  for  the  gods  of  the 
Twentieth  Century — the  enlightened,  progres- 
sive, responsible  citizens  of  a  democracy.  Come 
to  the  Industrial  League  meeting  next  Thurs- 
day night  and  you  will  learn  more  about  this 
than  I  can  possibly  tell  you.  I  will  send  you 
a  card,"  and  she  gaily  floated  away  with  Dr. 
Orrin  Morris,  her  escort  of  the  evening,  who 
had  been  impatiently  waiting  for  her  for  sev- 
eral minutes. 

Dr.  Orrin  Morris  and  Dr.  John  Earl  were 
graduated  from  the  same  class  in  the  Harvard 
medical  school,  but  Dr.  Morris  had  immedi- 
43 


An  American  Suffragette 

ately  after  graduation  settled  down  to  the  ex- 
clusive practice  of  surgery  according  to  ortho- 
dox methods,  and  was  already  regarded  as  one 
of  the  rising  young  surgeons  of  New  York 
City. 

His  father  had  met  with  financial  reverses 
in  1907  that  had  not  only  wrecked  the  family 
fortune  but  had  carried  him  to  an  untimely 
grave.  His  mother  had  been  dead  for  some 
years  and  he  had  no  brother  or  sister.  He 
maintained  a  house  on  East  57th  Street  and 
had  much  practice  in  two  of  the  prominent 
hospitals. 

Dr.  Morris  presented  a  rather  angular  ap- 
pearance as  he  strode  away  with  Miss  Holland. 
He  was  excessively  lean,  of  swarthy  complex- 
ion, dark  eyes,  black  hair  and  a  domineering 
air.  His  mother  had  possessed  a  strain  of  that 
Spanish  blood  that  was  freely  mixed  with  the 
Moors  during  their  occupancy  of  Spain,  and 
added  to  the  natural  tendencies  of  the  Latin 
were  visible  some  of  the  ear-marks  of  Moorish 
intensity.  For  some  months  he  had  been  pay- 
ing marked  attention  to  Miss  Holland,  whom 
he  had  known  in  a  general  way  for  a  long  time, 
and,  while  she  did  not  encourage  him,  she  had 
not  thought  it  necessary  to  dismiss  him,  for 
44 


A  Suffrage  Bazaar  and  Ball 

she  found  him  most  entertaining,  as  he  was 
regarded  as  one  of  the  best  non-professional 
violinists  in  New  York.  They  had  spent  many 
agreeable  evenings  together  over  their  music, 
she  playing  the  accompaniments  on  the  piano. 

His  views  on  public  questions  were  as  set 
and  conservative  as  were  his  views  on  medicine, 
and  she  never  attempted  to  discuss  those  mat- 
ters with  him ;  the  fact  that  she  could  not  do  so 
was  somewhat  a  relief  to  her  when  she  desired 
to  get  away  from  her  public  activities. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Ramsey,  Dr.  Morris  and  Miss 
Holland,  and  the  two  young  men  with  other 
ladies  of  their  acquaintance,  joined  in  the  last 
dance  and  then  started  for  the  cloakrooms 
together. 


'45 


CHAPTER   V 

HYPNOTISM  USED  FOR  AN  ANAESTHETIC 

MRS.  RAMSEY  and  Miss  Holland  emerged 
from  the  dressing-rooms  after  a  trifling  delay, 
and  found  Hilda's  party  and  Dr.  Morris  wait- 
ing in  the  foyer.  Just  as  they  were  about  mak- 
ing their  way  to  their  respective  motors  they 
heard  a  sudden  commotion  and  wild  cries  from 
the  street,  and  a  crowd  of  people  surged  in, 
crying  that  a  child  had  been  killed  by  an  auto- 
mobile. Both  Dr.  Earl  and  Dr.  Morris  rushed 
toward  the  street  as  a  man  came  in  carrying  a 
little  girl  of  perhaps  ten  years  of  age,  bleeding 
profusely  from  the  mouth  and  the  scalp,  with 
one  leg  evidently  broken.  The  mother  of  the 
child,  a  comely  woman  of  thirty,  followed, 
wringing  her  hands.  Her  excitement  verged 
on  hysteria,  but  at  the  sight  of  Dr.  Morris  she 
controlled  herself  by  a  mighty  effort. 

"To  the  hospital,  to  the  hospital,  Dr.  Earl," 
peremptorily  exclaimed  Dr.  Morris,  as  Dr. 


Hypnotism  Used  For  An  Anaesthetic 

Earl  threw  aside  his  coat  and,  rolling  back  his 
sleeves  and  directing  the  man  to  place  the  child 
on  a  table  in  one  of  the  ante-rooms,  began  to 
examine  the  character  of  the  injuries. 

"Oh,  don't  take  my  poor  child  to  the  hos- 
pital. I  know  she  will  die  if  she  goes  there; 
bring  her  home;  it  is  only  a  few  blocks,"  the 
mother  pleaded  with  Dr.  Morris,  whom  she 
seemed  to  know. 

"Don't  waste  time  here.  Where  is  the  tele- 
phone? I  will  call  an  ambulance  immediately." 

"I  don't  want  her  taken  to  the  hospital," 
said  the  woman  sullenly. 

"This  is  no  place  to  operate  on  a  hysterical 
child,"  Morris  answered.  "She  need  not  be 
kept  in  the  hospital,  but  she  should  certainly 
be  taken  there.  I  know  Dr.  Earl  will  agree 
with  me." 

In  the  meantime,  Earl  had  completed  his  ex- 
amination. Silvia  Holland  was  watching  him 
anxiously.  As  Morris  spoke  he  looked  up  and 
caught  her  eye. 

"It  is  only  a  simple  fracture,  and  the  scalp 
wounds  are  slight.  I  suppose  we  could  get 
along,  if  we  can  get  hot  water  and  the  necessary 
appliances,"  he  said  dubiously,  and  then  added, 
turning  to  the  woman,  "Dr.  Morris  is  quite 
47 


An  American  Suffragette 

right,  madame,  in  advising  the  hospital,  and  I 
assure  you  there  is  no  danger." 

The  woman  turned  pleading  eyes  to  Silvia. 
"She's  all  I  have,  and  I  can't  let  her  be  taken 
away  from  me.  Couldn't  we  go  home?  It  is 
only  a  few  blocks  away,  and  I  know  I  can  make 
her  comfortable.  Oh,  please,  please  don't  let 
them  take  her  away!" 

Miss  Holland  looked  at  Dr.  Earl  and  put 
her  arm  around  the  woman  protectingly.  "If 
it  isn't  any  worse  than  that,"  she  said  hesi- 
tatingly, "don't  you  think  you  could  do  as  she 
asks?  Setting  a  simple  fracture  isn't  a  very 
complicated  operation,  is  it?" 

Earl  smiled.  "Oh,  no,"  he  said,  "it  can  be 
done  in  a  comparatively  few  minutes." 

"Then  why  not  do  it,"  she  said,  "and  spare 
the  mother  all  this  protracted  agony,  and  get 
the  child  home?" 

"Because  there  are  no  appliances  here  to  ad- 
minister an  anaesthetic  or  do  anything  else 
properly,"  answered  Morris  impatiently,  "and 
no  one  can  tell  from  a  cursory  examination 
whether  or  not  there  are  other  injuries,  to 
say  nothing  of  the  danger  from  septicaemia  if 
the  work  is  done  in  a  clumsy,  slipshod  manner." 

Earl  colored,  and  Miss  Holland  replied  with 
48 


Hypnotism  Used  For  An  Ancesthetic 

some  spirit  that  even  the  absence  of  the  usual 
accessories  need  not  imply  clumsiness  of 
method,  and  again  asked  Earl  if  he  could  not 
manage  where  they  were.  He  turned  to  the 
mother. 

"If  you  insist  upon  it,  I  have  no  doubt  that 
I  can  do  all  that  is  necessary  without  bad  re- 
sults. As  to  the  anaesthetic,  we  can  dispense 
with  that." 

"I  will  have  nothing  to  do  with  the  case 
under  these  circumstances,"  Morris  said  an- 
grily. 

The  woman  hesitated,  and  then  said  firmly, 
"I  should  prefer  the  other  gentleman  to  take 
charge.  I  won't  have  her  taken  to  the  hos- 
pital." 

"Very  well,"  said  Earl,  and  taking  a  note- 
book from  his  pocket  he  wrote  out  a  list  of  nec- 
essary appliances,  bandages,  alcohol,  antiseptic 
solutions,  surgeon's  scissors,  needles,  silk  and 
thread,  and  giving  it  to  Frank  bade  him  hurry 
to  the  drug-store  around  the  corner  which  car- 
ried surgical  supplies  and  procure  them,  and 
also  to  bring  a  box  that  would  do  for  splints. 

"I  must  have  an  assistant,"  he  said,  and 
without  a  word,  Miss  Holland  improvised 
an  apron  from  some  of  the  bunting  that 
49 


An  American  Suffragette 

was  in  evidence  everywhere,  and  put  herself 
at  his  disposal.  He  sent  all  the  others  out  of 
the  room,  and  bent  over  the  child  for  a  few 
minutes.  What  did  he  do?  Miss  Holland 
watched,  but  could  not  tell.  The  moaning 
ceased,  the  little  limbs  relaxed,  and  the  child 
fell  into  a  quiet  sleep. 

The  mother  stood  just  outside  the  door,  lis- 
tening with  strained  attention,  and  after  two 
or  three  impatient  turns  about  the  foyer,  Mor- 
ris joined  her. 

"You  can  do  as  you  please  so  far  as  I  am 
concerned,"  he  said  in  a  low  tone,  "but  I  warn 
you  that  you  are  taking  big  risks.  Allie  is 
nervous  and  excitable  at  any  time,  and  to-night 
she  is  close  to  hysterics,  and  she  won't  get  over 
the  shock  of  even  a  simple  operation  in  a  hurry, 
especially  if  he  is  fool  enough  to  attempt  it 
without  an  anaesthetic." 

The  woman  wavered  for  a  moment,  and  then 
turned  away  without  a  word,  and  shrugging 
his  shoulders  Morris  strode  down  toward  the 
entrance.  A  moment  later  Silvia  Holland 
came  out  of  the  ante-room. 

"You  can  go  in  now,"  she  said,  "only  don't 
disturb  your  child ;  she  is  sleeping  and  you  must 
50 


Hypnotism  Used  For  An  Anesthetic 

be  very  quiet.  Did  you  see  Dr.  Morris?  Oh, 
there  he  is." 

Mindful  of  the  amenities  of  life,  she  hurried 
to  his  side.  His  face  was  dark  with  something 
more  than  anger,  and  did  not  lighten  as  she 
laid  the  tips  of  her  fingers  on  his  arm. 

"I  know  you  will  excuse  me,  Orrin,"  she 
said  gently.  "You  mustn't  be  angry  with  me, 
but  I  really  feel  as  if  I  ought  to  see  this 
through ;  the  poor  woman  needs  me.  You  will 
forgive  me?" 

He  looked  at  her  with  sudden  passion.  "Oh, 
yes,  I  forgive  you'3  he  said,  with  unmistakable 
emphasis  on  the  pronoun,  and  was  gone.  Silvia 
Holland  looked  after  him  for  a  moment,  con- 
scious that,  accustomed  as  she  was  to  his  moods, 
this  was  quite  a  new  one,  and  then  joined  Dr. 
Earl,  who  had  come  into  the  foyer  to  say  good- 
night to  the  Ramseys  and  Frank  Earl,  who 
had  returned  with  the  surgical  appliances  and 
found  nothing  more  that  he  could  do.  "By  the 
way,  old  man,"  Dr.  Earl  called  to  his  brother- 
in-law,  "send  the  machine  back  if  you  don't 
mind,"  and  with  a  word  of  thanks  he  re-entered 
the  ante-room,  followed  by  Miss  Holland,  and 
closed  the  door  against  further  interruption. 

There  was  a  sink  in  the  room,  with  hot  and 
51 


An  American  Suffragette 

cold  water,  and  he  directed  Miss  Holland  to 
cleanse  the  basin  and  implements  in  the  boiling 
water,  and  follow  this  up  by  dipping  them  in 
an  antiseptic  solution;  in  the  meantime  he 
ripped  the  box  to  pieces,  and  selected  two  strips, 
which  he  whittled  into  splints,  shaping  them  to 
the  child's  leg,  and  working  with  great  rapidity. 
The  bandages,  cotton  and  other  things  were 
laid  out  upon  the  table,  and  then  he  took  the 
basin  and  a  cloth  and  washed  the  wounds  on 
the  head,  putting  back  the  tousled  locks  as 
carefully  and  tenderly  as  a  woman. 

"Ordinarily,"  he  said  to  his  assistant,  "I 
should  have  done  this  first,  but  my  examina- 
tion showed  that  this  injury  is  very  slight.  Of 
course  she  has  bled  profusely,  but  it  has  come 
from  the  nose,  and  it  looks  pretty  bad,  but 
there  is  nothing  serious.  Half  a  dozen  stitches 
will  be  ample  for  the  scalp.  Thread  that  needle 
with  the  silk,  please.  Now  let  me  have  it." 
He  took  it  from  her,  and  in  a  moment  the  cuts 
on  the  head  were  sewed,  and  he  was  pulling 
the  leg  into  place,  applying  the  cotton,  the 
splints  and  bandages,  working  deftly  and 
silently.  "The  other  needle  with  the  thread, 
please,"  he  said,  not  looking  up,  and  Miss  Hol- 


Hypnotism  Used  For  An  Anaesthetic 

land  handed  it  to  him.     Presently  he  raised 
his  head  and  threw  back  his  shoulders. 

"It  is  all  done,"  he  said  simply,  and  called  the 
mother.  "I  shall  return  in  a  quarter  of  an 
hour,"  he  said,  "and  bring  her  out  of  this  sleep. 
Do  not  try  to  rouse  her,  for  you  cannot.  Do 
you  not  think,  Miss  Holland,  that  it  would  be 
well  for  me  to  get  a  nurse  to  assist  in  taking 
the  little  one  home?  I  can  'phone  when  I  re- 
turn these  instruments." 

"Your  machine  is  coming  back,  isn't  it?" 
Miss  Holland  answered.  "It  seems  to  me  that 
with  what  help  her  mother  and  I  can  render 
that  we  shall  manage." 

"Excellently,"  he  said.  "Then  you  will  be 
on  guard  until  my  return;  see  that  the  child 
is  not  disturbed.  I  shall  be  gone  but  a  few 
minutes." 

He  readjusted  his  attire,  and  taking  up  his 
hat  strode  out  of  the  building,  unconscious  un- 
til he  reached  the  door  that  half  a  dozen  ener- 
getic reporters  were  eagerly  asking  particulars. 
Finding  him  unwilling  to  tell  them  anything 
more  than  the  vaguest  generalities,  the  more  re- 
sourceful returned  to  the  improvised  operating- 
room,  and  before  Silvia  Holland  knew  it 
53 


An  American  Suffragette 

had  the  story  from  her  enthusiastic  lips,  sup- 
plemented by  a  few  facts  gathered  from  the 
woman.  For  thus  are  first-page  sensations  se- 
cured and  created. 

Silvia  noticed  that  the  woman  spoke  with 
visible  reluctance,  and  she  herself  passed  over 
the  controversy  between  Dr.  Morris  and  Dr. 
Earl,  anxious  to  spare  her  friend  any  unnec- 
essary annoyance. 

"I  am  sorry,  Mrs.  Bell,"  she  said  contritely. 
"I  didn't  realize  at  first  that  we  were  being  in- 
terviewed." 

"Oh,  there  is  no  harm  done,"  the  woman  said 
quietly.  "I  hope  the  doctor  will  not  mind; 
won't  he  be  back  pretty  soon?" 

Almost  as  she  spoke,  his  tall  form  was  seen 
making  its  way  through  the  besieging  ranks  of 
the  Fourth  Estate.  He  waved  them  aside  good 
humoredly,  but  refusing  to  be  interviewed,  he 
took  the  child  in  his  strong  arms  and,  followed 
by  her  mother  and  Miss  Holland,  made  his  way 
to  the  auto.  While  she  was  in  a  profound  sleep 
when  he  returned,  she  wakened  instantly  when 
he  commanded  her  to  do  so,  and  the  cool  night 
air  evidently  refreshed  her  greatly  as  they 
drove  to  Mrs.  Bell's  home.  Dr.  Earl  carried 
54 


Hypnotism  Used  For  An  Ancesthetic 

the  little  one  upstairs,  gave  her  mother  explicit 
directions,  and  promising  to  call  early  the  fol- 
lowing day  to  adjust  a  cast,  left  the  apartment 
with  Miss  Holland. 


55 


CHAPTER   VI 

SOME  STRENUOUS  ANTI-SUFFRAGISTS 

SEVERAL  of  the  New  York  papers  carried 
lurid  headlines  and  more  or  less  sensational  ac- 
counts of  the  accident  to  the  child  and  the  treat- 
ment administered  by  Dr.  Earl,  as  well  as  a 
tribute  to  the  heroism  of  the  volunteer  nurse. 
All  of  them  contained  a  report  of  some  charac- 
ter of  these  occurrences. 

When  Dr.  Earl  called  at  the  home  of  his 
fiancee,  according  to  appointment,  to  take  her 
and  her  mother  to  luncheon  the  next  day,  he 
found  Leonora  in  a  sullen  mood,  and  it  did 
not  take  him  long  to  discover  that  he  was  not 
in  high  favor  at  this  particular  hour. 

He  greeted  her  with  a  kiss,  but  hers  in  return 
was  perfunctory.  He  was  not  compelled  to 
wait  long  for  an  explanation,  for  she  poured 
out  her  feelings  without  any  questioning. 

"Oh,  Jack,  dear,  how  could  you  mix  up  with 
that  suffrage  crowd!  Don't  you  know  that 
56 


Some  Strenuous  Anti-Suffragists 

mamma  is  vice-president  of  the  Anti- Woman 
Suffrage  League?  She  is  so  annoyed!  And 
that  horrid  Silvia  Holland — why,  Jack,  she  is 
a  downright  socialist.  Don't  you  know  she  was 
arrested  in  England  for  trying  to  break  into 
parliament  with  a  lot  of  other  suffragettes,  and 
she  was  arrested  here  only  last  month  for  defy- 
ing the  police  and  taking  sides  with  a  lot  of 
girls  who  refused  to  work  in  the  factories  where 
they  were  employed !  Even  when  in  school  she 
was  horrid.  When  they  wouldn't  let  her  make 
a  suffrage  speech  on  the  school  grounds  one 
night  she  took  the  girls  to  a  neighboring  grave- 
yard and  spoke  from  a  flat  monument!  And 
to  think  the  papers  have  you  mixed  up  with 
her,  and  our  wedding  soon  to  be  announced! 
Oh,  it's  terrible!"  and  she  buried  her  face  in  the 
sofa  pillows. 

Had  this  scene  occurred  with  any  one  else, 
Jack  felt  certain  he  could  not  have  restrained 
his  laughter,  for  he  could  see  Miss  Holland 
delivering  an  exhortation  to  the  schoolgirls 
from  a  tombstone  in  a  cemetery  by  night.  But 
he  understood  the  prejudices  of  a  certain  ele- 
ment of  New  York  society,  and  while  the  past 
twenty-four  hours  had  led  him,  somewhat,  to 
believe  that  this  progressive  democratic  wave 
57 


An  American  Suffragette 

sweeping  over  the  world  had  engulfed  all  New 
Yorkers,  he  now  realized  how  sadly  mistaken 
he  had  been. 

With  infinite  tact  he  told  her  that  his  sister 
had  taken  their  party  to  the  ball — pointed  out 
his  own  duty  when  the  injured  child  had  been 
brought  in  from  the  street,  and  how  he  had  not 
even  suggested  that  Miss  Holland  should  as- 
sist him.  He  saw  that  the  present  was  no  time 
for  a  discussion  of  the  merits  of  the  case  or  a 
pronouncement  of  his  own  views,  but  he  dis- 
tinctly realized,  with  something  of  a  jolt,  it  is 
true,  that  a  wide  gulf  separated  the  Bourbon 
element  of  America's  supposed  democracy 
from  the  advancing  column  of  her  real  and 
inspired  democracy,  and  he  wondered  whether 
it  were  at  all  possible  to  tunnel  under  or  bridge 
over  this  gulf.  He  lightly  changed  the  sub- 
ject. 

"I  have  just  discovered  that  I  can  get  my  old 
offices  on  East  53rd  Street,  as  the  year's  lease 
expires  the  first  of  next  month,  and  the  agents 
heeded  my  letter  asking  them  to  wait  for  me. 
So  I  shall  feel  quite  at  home  in  the  old  quar- 
ters," he  said. 

She  smiled  at  this,  but  was  not  quite  ready 
to  drop  the  former  subject.  "Jack,  dear,  did 
58 


Some  Strenuous  Anti-Suffragists 

you  take  Miss  Holland  home  at  one  o'clock  in 
the  morning?" 

He  laughed  at  her  this  time,  as  he  bent  to 
kiss  her.  "I  really  believe  you  are  jealous,  you 
little  nymph.  Of  course  I  took  her  home.  She 
could  not  stay  there  all  night,  and  there  was 
no  one  else  to  take  her." 

She  looked  very  serious.  "No,  I  don't  know 
what  jealousy  is,"  she  slowly  and  emphatically 
said,  "but  I  don't  want  to  know  people  who 
do  the  things  that  Miss  Holland  does,  and  I 
don't  want  you  to  know  them." 

"My  dear  child,"  he  said,  taking  her  hands 
in  his  and  catching  her  eyes  with  his  own  steady 
glance.  "I  must  know  whoever  is  thrown  into 
my  path  either  in  a  professional  or  a  social  way. 
All  people  are  intensely  interesting  to  me,  for 
we  are,  after  all,  but  one  great  family  of  human 
beings,  trying  to  carve  out  lives  that  are  worth 
while,  and  this  we  can  do  better  by  getting  the 
best  there  is  from  each  other."  He  hesitated 
a  moment,  still  looking  steadily  at  her.  She 
quivered  slightly,  but  he  was  dimly  conscious  of 
the  colossal  character  of  the  will  she  was  sum- 
moning to  her  aid.  Then  very  slowly,  but  with 
all  the  earnestness  of  his  nature,  he  added, 
"You  must  get  away  from  these  views,  for  they 
59 


An  American  Suffragette 

are  dwarfing  and  not  becoming  to  you,  and  if 
you  do  not  we  shall  be  very  unhappy.  Miss 
Holland  is  a  remarkable  young  woman.  She 
is  destined  to  fill  a  great  place  in  our  American 
social  and  political  life.  She  is  well  worthy  of 
your  friendship." 

She  withdrew  her  hands,  but  still  kept  her 
eyes  fixed  on  his.  Her  brow  contracted  and 
with  emphasis  she  said:  "Miss  Holland  has 
forfeited  her  place  in  our  set  by  her  conduct; 
why,  Jack,  you  don't  know  how  she  is  criticized 
by  our  friends  or  you  would  not  suggest  such 
a  thing." 

He  arose  with  a  shrug  of  his  shoulders.  For- 
tunately, Mrs.  Kimball  appeared  at  this  mo- 
ment and  they  motored  to  the  Plaza  for 
luncheon,  which  was  a  somewhat  formal  and 
unsatisfactory  affair,  in  spite  of  all  his  efforts 
to  make  it  otherwise.  The  young  man  could 
not  but  feel  that  Mrs.  Kimball  shared  her 
daughter's  views — was,  in  fact,  their  author — 
and  that  in  the  eyes  of  his  future  mother-in-law 
he  had  been  guilty  of  a  breach  of  etiquette  far 
more  serious  than  an  infraction  of  the  moral 
law.  He  left  them  with  the  understanding  that 
he  would  accompany  them  to  the  theatre  in  the 
evening. 

60 


CHAPTER   VII 

CHRISTIAN  SCIENCE  AND  SURGERY 

THE  days  of  a  militant  suffragette  are  full 
to  overflowing,  and  Silvia  Holland  was  not 
able  to  see  Mrs.  Bell  and  her  little  daughter 
early  the  following  morning  as  she  had  planned. 
It  must  have  been  well  toward  the  middle  of 
the  afternoon  when  she  entered  the  modest 
apartment,  and  going  to  the  bed,  visible  in  the 
alcove,  kissed  the  child  and  put  a  great,  dewy 
bunch  of  violets  in  her  hand.  She  took  them, 
and  hugged  them  tight  in  her  thin  little  arms, 
while  her  eyes  looked  into  Silvia's  wonderingly, 
and  her  mother  turned  away  to  hide  the  sudden 
tears. 

The  apartment  was  well  though  not  ex- 
pensively furnished,  and  both  mother  and  child 
had  the  unmistakable  air  of  good  birth  and  re- 
finement. As  Silvia  glanced  at  Mrs.  Bell  she 
was  conscious  of  something  in  her  face  at  once 
baffling  and  appealing.  She  had  the  indefina- 
61 


An  American  Suffragette 

ble  look  of  one  who  dwells  with  a  sorrow  for 
which  there  is  no  cure. 

"Are  you  quite  sure  there  is  nothing  I  can 
do  for  either  of  you  to-day?"  Silvia  asked,  a 
trifle  diffidently,  for  she  did  not  want  to  offend 
by  overzeal. 

"You  and  Dr.  Earl  have  placed  us  under  so 
many  obligations  that  we  can  never  hope  to 
repay  them,"  Mrs.  Bell  said  quietly.  "If  I  do 
not  speak  more  freely  of  what  I  feel,  it  is  be- 
cause I  have  no  words  for  its  expression." 

"Don't  speak  or  think  of  obligations,"  Silvia 
said  lightly,  "and  here  is  my  card,  so  that  if  at 
any  time  I  might  be  of  service  to  you  I  hope 
you  will  not  hesitate  to  call  on  me.  I  live  at 
the  Whittier  Studios."  The  card  which  she 
gave  Mrs.  Bell  read: 

SILVIA  HOLLAND, 

Attorney  and  Counsellor-at-Law, 

City  Investment  Building, 

New  York  City. 

Mrs.  Bell  looked  at  it  curiously.  "Oh,  it 
isn't  possible  that  you  are  that  Miss  Holland, 
the  Miss  Holland!"  she  said  incredulously. 

Silvia  laughed.  "Don't  I  look  as  if  I  could 
say  'Gentlemen  of  the  jury'  with  sufficient 
62 


Christian  Science  and  Surgery 

gravity?"  she  said.  "Probably  I  shall  do  better 
when  we  say  'Ladies  of  the  jury,'  too." 

"You  look  like  what  you  are,  a  beautiful 
and  fashionable  lady,"  Mrs.  Bell  answered. 
"Surely  no  one  would  ever  take  you  for  a  pro- 
fessional woman." 

"Must  a  fashionable  lady  be  a  listless  para- 
site? Even  if  she  wishes  merely  to  be  a  queen 
of  society,  would  she  not  be  more  queenly  if 
she  knew  the  trials  and  afflictions  of  others,  and, 
better  still,  knew  how  to  help  them?  Would 
she  be  less  a  queen  if  she  were  not  dependent 
upon  some  man  for  her  daily  bread — 

A  sudden  flash  of  something,  she  could  not 
tell  wrhether  it  was  pain  or  rebellion  or  despair, 
crossed  Mrs.  Bell's  face,  and  Silvia  hesitated 
and  then  went  on  rather  hurriedly,  as  if,  know- 
ing she  had  struck  a  false  note,  she  sought  to 
distract  the  other  woman's  thought  from  it. 
"I  am  trying  to  demonstrate  the  glorious  mis- 
sion that  belongs  to  woman  when  she  fills  her 
predestined  sphere  of  economic  independence 
and  political  freedom." 

"Political  freedom  will  come  first  and  eas- 
iest," said  the  woman  slowly.  She  raised  her 
eyes,  filled  with  trouble,  and  looked  full  into 
Silvia's.  "The  other  is  the  greater  boon,  and 
63 


An  American  Suffragette 

will  be  harder  to  win.  Some  day  I  may  need 
to  consult  a  lawyer;  there  is  no  one  I  would  so 
gladly  trust;  it  is  a  personal  matter  and  may 
adjust  itself,  if  not 

"If  not,  telephone  to  make  sure  that  I  am  in, 
and  I  shall  be  glad  to  see  you  at  any  time," 
answered  Silvia. 

There  was  the  sound  of  a  quick,  firm  step  in 
the  hall,  and  the  bell  rang.  Mrs.  Bell  opened 
the  door  and  admitted  Dr.  Earl.  After  a  few 
questions  and  the  exchange  of  greetings,  he 
went  over  to  the  bedside  of  his  small  patient. 
He  found  the  child  doing  admirably,  and 
glanced  hastily  about  the  room,  trying  to  make 
up  his  mind  whether  he  might  offer  any  other 
assistance  than  that  of  a  professional  character. 
He  decided  that  he  could  not,  and  realized  with 
a  sense  of  pleasure  and  relief  that  Miss  Hol- 
land would  be  able  to  attend  to  such  details 
with  more  tact  and  skill  than  he  could.  Nor 
could  he  help  the  glow  of  gratification  that  they 
should  be  associated  in  so  vital  a  matter,  one 
that  he  felt  swept  away  the  petty  convention- 
alities of  society,  and  placed  them  on  a  footing 
of  understanding  and  common  sympathy  not 
to  have  been  acquired  by  months,  or  even  years, 
of  the  ordinary  social  amenities.  After  a  few 
64 


Christian  Science  and  Surgery 

directions  for  the  care  of  the  small  patient,  and 
a  promise  to  look  in  the  following  day,  he  told 
Mrs.  Bell  how  to  find  him  in  case  of  any  sud- 
den need  and  took  up  his  hat  and  stick. 

"Were  you  going,  Dr.  Earl?  Can  I  set  you 
down  anywhere?  My  car  is  at  the  door." 

He  bowed,  and  followed  her  out.  "We  have 
an  embarrassment  of  riches,"  he  said,  "for  my 
car  is  also  here."  Then,  rather  boyishly,  moved 
by  an  impulse  he  would  have  found  it  hard  to 
explain,  he  said,  "Suppose  we  dismiss  them 
both,  and  walk  up  through  the  Park?" 

She  acquiesced,  and  a  few  moments  later 
they  were  strolling  up  the  Avenue,  rather 
silently,  considering  that  each  had  many  things 
to  say.  As  usual,  it  was  the  woman  who  broke 
the  silence. 

"Tell  me  about  all  this.  I  never  was  more 
interested  in  anything  in  my  life,"  she  said, 
looking  up  at  him  with  a  glance  that  carried  the 
subtlest  flattery,  and,  while  her  query  was 
vague,  he  understood  and  made  no  attempt  to 
evade  it. 

"It  is  a  long  story,"  he  said;  "have  you  time 
for  it  to-day?  And  it  is  really  no  more  re- 
markable than  the  effect  you  produced  in  your 
parade  yesterday,  and  I  think  the  causes  are 
65 


An  American  Suffragette 

the  same.  The  world  is  full  of  mystery,  but 
before  honest,  earnest  purpose  of  any  kind  the 
storehouses  of  mystery  will  eventually  open. 
The  fact  is,  that  the  present  tremendous  pro- 
gressive movement  in  the  world  is  spiritual  and 
every  phase  of  it  is  interdependent  upon  every 
other  element.  The  thoughtless  call  these 
things  'fads.'  In  reality,  each  one  of  them 
marks  a  crystallization  of  centuries  of  thought 
and  hope  and  dream  for  the  advancement  and 
elevation  of  the  human  race.  The  world,  as 
usually  happens  in  spiritual  matters,  awakened 
to  the  importance  of  all  of  them  at  the  same 
time."  He  paused,  as  if  realizing  for  the  first 
time  how  personal  was  the  story  for  which  she 
had  asked.  "You  will  think  me  an  egregious 
egotist,  Miss  Holland,  I  fear." 

"No,  whatever  you  may  be,  or  I  may  think 
you,  you  need  have  no  fears  on  that  score." 
She  answered  simply,  directly.  "Please  tell 
me — if  you  think  I  deserve  so  great  a  confi- 
dence." 

He  bowed  gravely;  there  was  no  hint  of 
coquetry  in  her  manner. 

"Directly  after  my  graduation  at  Harvard, 
three  years  ago,  I  opened  offices  in  New  York, 
intending  to  specialize  in  surgery,  for  I  had 
66 


Christian  Science  and  Surgery 

prepared  for  that,  though  I  desired  to  obtain 
a  general  practice  for  a  while  to  put  into  effect 
and  improve  my  theoretical  knowledge.  In  a 
misty  way  I  soon  realized  that  neither  my  own 
efforts  nor  those  of  my  colleagues  were  crowned 
with  the  success  that  should  attend  a  profession 
founded  upon  strictly  scientific  principles,  as 
modern  surgery  is.  The  chief  cause  of  disturb- 
ance with  me  was  that  so  many  operations  were 
performed  which  subsequent  developments 
showed  might  have  been  avoided,  but  which  at 
the  time  seemed  imperative.  I  redoubled  my 
studies  of  materia  medica,  hoping  to  find  a 
way  by  which  this  difficulty  might  be  obviated 
or  overcome,  and  while  my  constant  researches 
helped,  I  still  found  much  difficulty  in  arriving 
at  accurate  conclusions  before  attempting  an 
operation.  I  found  nothing  that  satisfied  me. 
I  was  also  greatly  bothered  and  baffled  by  the 
large  number  of  cases  which  the  surgeon  en- 
counters, controlled  or  dependent  upon  nervous 
conditions  and  the  futility  of  the  drugs  ordi- 
narily given. 

"While  in  this  mood  a  friend  of  mine  called 
at  my  office  one  Wednesday  evening  by  ap- 
pointment.   He  was  the  general  manager  of  a 
large  utility  company  that  has  to  do  with  the 
67 


An  American  Suffragette 

people  of  every  section  of  the  civilized  world, 
and  a  man  of  rare  judgment,  knowledge  of  the 
world,  and  poise.  We  were  on  most  intimate 
terms,  and  I  had  already  told  him  something  of 
these  perplexities.  This  evening,  I  had  sup- 
posed that  he  was  coming  to  see  me  profession- 
ally, and  I  had  made  other  engagements.  As 
soon  as  he  stepped  into  my  private  office,  he 
said:  'Doctor,  cancel  every  engagement  you 
have  for  this  evening.  I  need  you  very  badly  in 
affairs  of  my  own.  You  are  to  ask  no  ques- 
tions, but  do  as  I  request  and  send  me  your  bill 
to-morrow.' 

"Of  course  I  could  not  refuse  him,  so  I  ar- 
ranged to  go  with  him,  and  then  asked  whether 
I  should  require  surgical  instruments  or  only 
a  medicine  case.  He  replied  that  I  would  need 
neither,  and  I  could  gain  nothing  from  his 
manner,  for  he  was  very  grave.  At  his  sug- 
gestion we  walked,  going  up  Fifth  Avenue  to 
the  Park,  and  then  across  the  Park  to  the  cor- 
ner of  96th  Street  and  Central  Park  West, 
where  there  stands  a  great  church.  The  rolling 
notes  of  the  organ  filled  the  quiet  with  an  im- 
pressiveness  I  had  never  felt  before,  and  the 
congregation  was  singing  an  old  hymn  with 
an  earnestness  and  depth  of  feeling  quite  dif- 
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Christian  Science  and  Surgery 

ferent  from  most  congregational  singing.  We 
entered  and  were  shown  to  seats  in  the  balcony, 
in  the  front  row,  where  we  had  an  excellent  view 
of  most  of  those  below.  'You  will  find  many 
of  your  acquaintances  here,'  he  said,  and  on 
looking  around  I  was  surprised  at  the  great 
number  of  prominent  New  York  men  and 
women  in  the  audience. 

"After  the  preliminary  proceedings  those 
that  desired  to  do  so  were  invited  to  tell  their 
experiences  in  combating  disease,  or  other  ad- 
verse conditions.  What  I  heard  was  a  revela- 
tion. This  experience,  corroborating,  as  it  did, 
my  own  observations,  emphasized  how  little  of 
the  field  of  suggestive  and  mental  therapeutics 
the  ordinary  medical  practitioner  really  filled, 
and  I  determined  to  explore  that  field  before 
going  any  further  with  my  practice.  I  thanked 
my  friend  for  taking  me  to  this  place,  and  with- 
in a  month  I  decided  to  go  abroad.  I  visited 
the  institutions  of  note  in  Europe,  where  sug- 
gestive therapeutics  are  practiced,  and  then 
went  to  India,  where  I  spent  many  months. 
There  I  found  the  original  source  of  suggest- 
ive, mental  and  spiritual  treatment. 

"If  the  Yogi  of  India  could  supplement  his 
method  of  training  the  subconscious  mind  with 
69 


An  American  Suffragette 

the  knowledge  which  our  regular  physicians 
possess,  and  could  apply  both  with  discrimi- 
nating skill,  we  would  have  the  greatest  human 
healing  power  ever  known.  The  best  I  could 
hope  for  was  to  apply  as  much  of  the  wisdom 
of  the  Yogi  and  other  cults  in  India  and  Eu- 
rope as  I  could  master  in  the  brief  time  at  my 
disposal,  and  that  I  am  attempting  to  do.  With 
all  the  perfection  of  system  in  training  the  sub- 
conscious mind  that  characterizes  a  compara- 
tively few  of  the  inhabitants  of  India,  the  mil- 
lions are  left  without  any  appreciable  benefits 
therefrom,  just  as  the  millions  here  are  left 
without  the  full  benefits  of  the  special  training 
of  the  few. 

"We  are  but  touching  the  borderland  of  this 
mysterious  realm  of  the  occult,  the  subcon- 
scious and  the  spiritual  forces  that  have  such 
an  important  bearing  upon  all  phases  of  human 
life,  and  which,  when  intelligently  applied  to 
the  child  in  school  and  the  direction  of  the  indi- 
vidual in  his  career,  promise  so  much  for  the 
elevation,  longevity  and  achievements  of  the 
human  race. 

"The  world  is  just  waking  up  to  the  vast  sig- 
nificance of  the  spiritual  teachings  of  Jesus 
Christ,  and  their  bearing  upon  all  phases  and 
70 


Christian  Science  and  Surgery 

activities  of  human  life.  When  Christ  told  the 
Pharisees  that  'the  kingdom  of  God  is  within 
you/  he  carried  the  lesson,  though  little  under- 
stood then,  and  so  fully  comprehended  now, 
that  Christianity,  citizenship,  government, 
health,  happiness  and  progress  are  all  depend- 
ent upon  the  character  of  the  ideals  and  pur- 
poses and  daily  life  of  the  individual. 

"When  Christ  told  the  lawyer  that  to  'love 
thy  neighbor  as  thyself  was  one  of  the  essen- 
tials of  salvation,  he  laid  the  corner-stone  for 
a  pure  and  honest  democracy,  without  which 
underlying  principle  there  can  be  no  lasting 
democratic  government.  We  now  know,  in 
medicine,  that  much  of  longevity  and  good 
health  and  power  of  recuperation  depend  upon 
the  ideals  of  the  individual,  and  their  inspiring 
influence. 

"It  is  too  bad  that  with  all  our  tremendous 
progress  we  allow  bigotry  and  prejudice  to 
hamper  us  in  getting  the  most  out  of  the  wis- 
dom around  us  as  well  as  that  of  the  ages,  all 
of  which  is  correlated.  Yet  very  often  the 
orthodox  Christian,  who  believes  that  Christ 
not  only  healed  the  sick  but  also  raised  the  dead, 
decries  the  Christian  Scientist  who  only  pro- 
fesses to  restore  the  sick  on  the  theory  that  dis- 


An  American  Suffragette 

ease  cannot  exist  in  an  individual  properly  im- 
bued with  Christ's  teachings.  Too  often  the 
orthodox  doctor  of  medicine  denounces  the 
healer  who  overcomes  apparent  disease  through 
mental  suggestion  or  arrests  a  nervous  break- 
down in  a  patient  by  teaching  that  patient  how 
to  relax,  when  the  doctor  himself  does  not  hesi- 
tate to  give  bread  pills  in  the  first  instance  and 
to  recommend  a  sanitarium  where  relaxation  is 
the  only  thing  attempted  in  the  second.  And 
I  presume  this  quotation  from  the  Dhamma- 
pada,  which  is  many  centuries  older  than  the 
Christian  religion,  would  be  denounced  as  her- 
esy by  some  of  the  Christian  Scientists,  al- 
though it  embodies  the  spirit  and  almost  the 
words  of  their  own  teachings:  'All  that  we 
are  is  the  result  of  what  we  have  thought.  It 
is  founded  on  our  thoughts;  it  is  made  up  of 
our  thoughts.  If  a  man  speak  or  act  with  an 
evil  thought,  pain  follows  him  as  the  wheel 
follows  the  foot  of  the  ox  that  draws  the 
carriage.' " 

Presently  Dr.  Earl  hailed  a  passing  taxi- 
cab,  and  gave  the  order  to  be  taken  to  the  Whit- 
tier  Studios.  The  drive  home  was  silent.  Once 
or  twice  Silvia  looked  at  her  tall  companion. 
She  was  frankly  curious  about  the  Paris  case, 
72 


Christian  Science  and  Surgery 

but  something  in  the  quiet,  self-contained  face 
of  the  man  beside  her  did  not  invite  questions. 
On  his  part,  John  Earl  was  asking  himself 
why  he  should  have  given  his  confidence  to"tmY 
comparative  stranger,  and  the  longer  he 
thought  about  it  the  less  able  was  he  to  answer 
his  question. 


CHAPTER   VIII 

THE  OMNIPRESENT  EYES  OF  FIFTH  AVENUE 

THE  source  of  gossip  in  a  village  is  the  cor- 
ner grocery  store ;  in  a  small  city,  what  goes  on 
about  the  public  square;  in  the  medium-sized 
city,  what  transpires  in  the  leading  cafe;  in 
New  York,  Fifth  Avenue  and  Central  Park 
are  the  all-abounding  sources  of  gossip.  The 
Avenue  has  a  thousand  curious  eyes;  those  on 
the  sidewalk  peering  into  automobiles  and  car- 
riages for  sensations ;  those  being  whirled  along 
in  vehicles,  straining  their  power  in  the  quest 
of  salacious  information  among  the  throng  be- 
yond the  curbstone.  All  New  York  passes 
along  Fifth  Avenue  at  some  time  or  another. 
All  of  one's  friends  are  always  passing  along 
that  way  when  one  does  not  particularly  wish 
to  be  seen  by  them.  If  one  is  walking, 
the  friends  are  invariably  driving;  if  one  is 
driving,  of  course  the  ubiquitous  acquaintances 
74 


The  Omnipresent  Eyes  of  Fifth  Avenue 

are  out  for  a  stroll.  Sometimes  people  have 
been  known  to  escape  two-thirds  of  the  omni- 
present eyes  that  line  the  sidewalks,  pack  the 
Avenue  and  infest  the  highways  of  Central 
Park,  but  no  person  has  ever  been  heard  of 
who  escaped  all  of  them. 

So  the  lot  of  our  strollers  was  but  the  com- 
mon lot  of  all,  visitors  as  well  as  resident  New 
Yorkers. 

While  mutually  absorbed,  the  one  in  reciting 
the  tale,  the  other  in  listening  to  it;  while 
diverted  and  interested  by  the  thousand  sparks 
that  radiate  from  the  batteries  of  youthful  en- 
ergy and  enthusiasm  and  tingle  the  sensibili- 
ties of  a  congenial  comrade ;  while  speculating 
on  the  unknown  vista  from  peep-holes  that 
show  only  fragments,  but  realizing  all  the  vast- 
ness  and  richness  of  the  world  force  and  uni- 
versal sympathy  possessed  by  each  of  them — 
it  is  not  strange  that  in  four  blocks  on  the  Ave- 
nue they  were  passed  by  two  ladies  in  an  auto- 
mobile, who  took  more  than  an  ordinary  in- 
terest in  their  movements,  and  by  a  dark-eyed, 
dark-haired  man  in  another  car,  whose  eyes 
gleamed  and  whose  cheeks  blanched  at  the 
sight  of  their  absorption  in  each  other. 

But  the  things  garnered  on  the  Avenue  are 
.7$ 


An  American  Suffragette 

never  placed  in  cold  storage,  and  soon  enough 
both  of  them  were  to  hear  about  this  stroll. 

When  Dr.  Earl  called  that  evening  to  take 
Mrs.  and  Miss  Kimball  to  the  theatre  he  dis- 
covered that  his  reception  in  the  morning  had 
been  tropical  compared  to  this  one.  He  was 
compelled  to  wait  fully  fifteen  minutes  before 
Miss  Kimball  appeared  in  house  gown  and 
slippers,  indicating  her  purpose  to  remain  at 
home,  and  the  bearer  of  a  message  that  her 
mother  begged  to  be  excused,  as  she  had  retired 
with  a  sick  headache. 

In  vain  he  sought  for  a  reason  for  his  frigid 
reception,  and  feeling  that  his  presence  was 
an  affliction  he  arose  to  go. 

"I  hope  you  had  a  pleasant  stroll  this  after- 
noon," came  in  icicle  tones. 

This  shed  all  the  light  necessary  upon  the 
character  of  his  greeting. 

The  eyes  of  Fifth  Avenue  had  not  grown 
dim. 

"Yes,"  he  replied,  looking  at  her  steadily, 
"it  was  a  most  delightful  stroll." 

She  could  stand  the  strain  no  longer;  she 
came  close  to  him  and  he  stooped  and  tenderly 
kissed  her. 

"Oh,  Jack,  why  do  you  persist  in  having 
76 


The  Omnipresent  Eyes  of  Fifth  Avenue, 

anything  to  do  with  her  when  you  know  how 
unhappy  it  makes  me!"  she  said  in  her  gentlest 
tone. 

They  sat  down  and  he  related  the  entire  story 
of  the  occurrences  of  the  afternoon  to  her.  It 
pacified  her  to  a  degree. 

"But  Jack,  dear,  you  will  promise  me  never 
to  see  her  again,  will  you  not?"  and  her  tone 
was  pleading  now. 

"I  promised  to  go  with  my  brother  to  a  suf- 
frage meeting  she  is  holding  Thursday  night. 
Of  course  you  would  not  wish  to  go,  and  I  am 
certain  you  do  not  want  me  to  break  my 
promise." 

"I  am  certain,"  she  said,  emphasizing  each 
word,  "that  I  do  not  want  you  to  gee  her 
again." 

"Let  me  understand  you,  Leonora,  dear. 
There  are  many  prominent  New  York  women 
in  this  suffrage  movement.  Some  of  my  very 
best  old-time  friends,  I  am  informed,  are  par- 
ticipating in  it.  Is  it  your  desire  that  I  shall 
cut  their  acquaintance  also,  or  is  it  just  Miss 
Holland  you  want  me  never  to  see  again?" 

"Now,  don't  think  I  am  jealous  of  her,  for 
I  am  not.  She  is  the  most  conspicuous  one  in 
this  suffrage  movement  on  account  of  the  awful 
77 


An  American  Suffragette 

things  she  does,  but  I  don't  care  to  associate 
with  any  person  who  is  identified  with  this 
crusade.  Neither  does  my  mother,  nor  any  of 
our  social  set,  and  of  course  I  would  like  you 
to  feel  the  same  way." 

"But  suppose  I  do  not  feel  that  way.  Sup- 
pose my  sympathies  are  with  them  and  my  pro- 
fession as  well  as  my  political  predilections 
should  carry  me  among  them?"  he  asked 
earnestly. 

"Oh,  Jack,  what  has  come  over  you  that  you 
are  so  plebeian!  Can't  you  see  how  these 
women  are  cheapening  New  York  society,  as- 
sociating with  workingmen  and  shop  girls!" 

"But  that  is  what  they  should  do  in  a  democ- 
racy, and  I  am  sure  I  never  saw  better-looking 
women  in  my  life  than  these  same  busy  suf- 
fragists. They  have  something  to  do,  and  are 
not  dying  of  ennui  or  listlessness,"  he  answered. 

"Their  stock  argument,"  she  answered,  "but 
whoever  heard  of  an  aristocracy  based  on  such 
things  as  these  women  engage  in.  Promise  me, 
Jack,  that  you  will  have  nothing  to  do  with  any 
of  them." 

"You  are  unduly  wrought  up  to-night,"  he 
answered,  "but  I  will  promise  you  that  I  shall 
do  nothing  to  cause  you  unnecessary  annoy- 
78 


The  Omnipresent  Eyes  of  Fifth  Avenue, 

ance.  You  must  not  be  too  captious,  dear,  and 
remember  that  I  go  Thursday  night." 

She  started  to  protest,  but  he  drowned  the 
effort  in  a  shower  of  caresses  and  bade  her 
good-night.  Each  of  them,  in  the  silence  of 
their  own  apartments,  thought  long  and  earn- 
estly of  this  interview.  Leonora  Kimball  had 
been  taught  to  believe  that  the  chief  badges  of 
an  aristocracy  were  complete  idleness  of  the 
women,  and  the  possession  of  enough  wealth 
to  support  such  idleness.  It  mattered  not  how 
mentally  insipid  or  morally  opaque  or  physi- 
cally inane  such  women  might  be,  the  true  test 
of  being  fitted  for  the  purple  was  whether  or 
not  they  had  ever  done  any  useful  work,  and 
whether  or  not  they  had  money  enough  so  that 
the  other  members  of  their  set  might  feel  as- 
sured that  they  never  would  do  any  useful 
work.  An  aristocracy  of  trained  brains  or  un- 
selfish culture  were  meaningless  terms  to  her. 

But  this  night  she  was  greatly  disturbed 
over  the  attitude  of  the  man  she  was  to  marry. 
She  had  been  quite  honest  with  him  when  she 
asserted  that  jealousy  was  foreign  to  her  na- 
ture; affection  did  not  run  deep  enough  with 
her  to  strike  its  eternal  renewing  fountain — 
jealousy.  The  practical  character  with  which 
79 


An  American  Suffragette 

she  had  been  endowed  easily  enough  conducted 
affairs  of  the  heart  along  paths  directed  by 
the  head,  and  while  her  professions  of  love  were 
quite  sincere  and  her  loyalty  beyond  question, 
yet  she  had  not  the  remotest  idea  of  the  grand 
passion.  She  knew  that  she  was  very  fond  of 
John  Earl;  that  he  was  worthy  of  her;  that 
he  could  sustain  her  manner  of  life  and  that  his 
social  standing  was  all  that  either  she  or  her 
mother  could  desire.  She  also  knew  that  she 
did  not  wish  to  lose  him,  and  much  as  she  ab- 
horred the  suffragists,  she  determined  to  be 
lenient  with  his  present  mood,  certain  she  could 
change  it  ere  long,  else  of  what  avail  was  the 
all-powerful  "silent  influence"  upon  which  the 
Anti- Suffragists  laid  so  much  stress? 

Earl  was  more  than  disturbed  by  her  atti- 
tude, for  he  discovered  traits  of  character  and 
a  shallowness  of  sympathy  that  shocked  him. 
His  dream  of  married  bliss  was  the  absolute 
camaraderie  he  expected  it  to  bring.  He  feared 
now  that  she  would  not  enter  into  his  life  or 
ambitions,  and,  like  too  many  of  his  married 
acquaintances,  they  would  be  seeking  happiness 
along  diverse  paths. 

"However,  it's  all  very  new  to  her,"  he  said 
to  himself  after  an  hour's  reverie,  "and  she  is 
80 


The  Omnipresent  Eyes  of  Fifth  Avenue 

quite  young.    A  few  weeks  will  properly  ad- 
just our  relations." 

The  dominant  characteristic  of  this  young 
man  was  a  deep  sense  of  justice,  and  while  other 
feelings  were  all  too  manifest  in  his  subcon- 
scious being,  he  permitted  himself  only  to  try 
to  solve  the  problem  of  what  was  the  right 
thing  along  the  lines  where  he  had  cast  his 
future. 


CHAPTER   IX 

LOVE,  JEALOUSY  AND  MUSIC 

THE  telephone  bell  in  her  apartment  was 
ringing  as  Miss  Holland  entered  from  her 
stroll,  radiantly  happy  and  at  peace  with  all 
the  world.  She  took  the  receiver  from  the 
maid. 

"Dr.  Morris?  Yes,  I  shall  be  home  this 
evening,  and  glad  to  see  you,  of  course.  Bring 
your  violin  and  come  by  eight-thirty.  Yes — 
yes.  I  meant  to  have  called  you  and  apologized 
for  my  somewhat  cavalier  desertion  of  you  last 
night.  I  am  sorry  I  was  rude,  I  didn't  mean 
to  be,  but  come  and  let  me  ask  you  to  forgive 
me."  Her  tone  was  adorable  and  melted  the 
sullen  mood  of  the  man  at  the  other  end  of  the 
wire. 

Having  sworn  that  he  would  not  see  her 
again,  having  'phoned  to  make  an  appointment 
at  which  he  meant  to  utter  as  bitter  reproaches 
as  he  dared,  he  appeared  promptly  at  the  hour 


Love,  Jealousy  and  Music 

set,  ready  to  implore  her  grace  and  accept  with 
gratitude  any  smallest  favor,  any  ray  of  hope 
she  might  see  fit  to  bestow  upon  him. 

Like  many  another  professional  man  in  New 
York,  in  order  to  cater  to  the  class  in  society  in 
which  he  hoped  to  establish  his  reputation  and 
clientele,  Morris  had  found  it  necessary  to  live 
in  a  style  which  far  exceeded  his  income,  al- 
though that  was  a  good  one  for  a  man  still 
young  in  his  profession.  He  was  not  popular 
with  men,  who  regarded  him  as  rather  theatri- 
cal and  a  poseur,  but  his  music,  a  certain  defer- 
ence of  manner,  a  more  romantic  quality  than 
is  to  be  generally  found  among  American  busi- 
ness men,  gave  him  a  great  vogue  with  women, 
and  he  cultivated  them,  especially  the  older 
ones,  and  they  made  life  very  pleasant  for  him, 
introduced  him  to  the  right  people,  and  gave 
him  much  good  advice  now  and  then. 

One  of  the  smartest  of  these  social  leaders 
said  practically  one  day:  "My  dear  boy,  why 
do  you  let  all  these  rich  girls  marry  those  silly 
foreigners,  without  an  idea  to  bless  themselves 
with — dukes,  debts  and  diseases  seem  synony- 
mous; you  are  not  only  clever,  but  you  have 
the  one  gift,  saving  the  title,  that  commends 
these  creatures  to  our  girls." 
83 


An  American  Suffragette 

He  smiled  his  inscrutable  smile  and  bowed. 
"And  that  is?" 

"You  seem  to  have  found  the  lost  art  of 
making  pretty  speeches,  and  paying  a  woman 
the  small  attentions  that  we  all  like  so  well.  If 
I  were  a  man,"  went  on  this  dreadful  dame,  "I 
should  never  forget  to  kiss  my  wife  and  send 
her  flowers  and  remember  all  the  family  anni- 
versaries. It  is  by  attention  to  such  small  de- 
tails as  this  that  a  man  may  purchase  immunity 
in  larger  and  more  important  matters.  I  know 
this  is  most  immoral,  but  it  makes  the  wife 
happy,  the  husband  comfortable,  and  would  go 
far  to  decimate  the  divorce  rate,  so  what  more 
could  you  ask?" 

"Perhaps  I  owe  this  to  the  fact  that  my  fa- 
ther was  a  Hungarian  nobleman — oh,  just  a 
trumpery  little  title,  with  nothing  to  pay  for 
the  necessary  gold  lace,  so  when  he  came  to 
America  he  decided,  like  so  many  of  the  revo- 
lutionists of  that  period,  to  be  ultra- American, 
and  dropped  even  the  foreign  spelling  of  the 
name,  changing  the  'itz*  to  plain  'r-i-s,' "  he 
answered.  "I'm  sure  my  music  belongs  to  the 
other  side  of  the  Atlantic." 

"That  accounts  for  it  all,"  she  said.  "There 
is  absolutely  no  reason  why  you  shouldn't 
84 


Love,,  Jealousy  and  Music 

marry  almost  any  woman  you  want  to.  Why 
not  find  one  who  can  give  you  millions  in 
money  and  the  social  position  you  need  without 
taking  a  generation  to  create  one?  I  hope  you 
haven't  any  foolish  entanglements,"  she  added. 

He  flushed,  but  did  not  answer,  and  when  a 
few  weeks  later  he  and  Silvia  Holland  had 
played  together  for  some  charitable  entertain- 
ment, his  venerable  mentor  had  sought  him  out, 
ready  to  bestow  her  blessing  at  the  earliest  pos- 
sible moment,  approving  his  practical  judg- 
ment and  his  good  taste.  That  was  a  long  time 
ago. 

He  had  resented  the  implication  at  the  time; 
to  do  him  justice,  had  Silvia  been  penniless  she 
would  still  have  attracted  him  as  no  other 
woman  ever  had.  It  was  partly  her  personal 
charm,  partly  her  music.  It  may  be  true  that 
the  world  of  art  is  still  the  world,  but  it  is  a 
very  different  world  from  that  in  which  most 
of  us  live  and  move  and  have  our  being,  and 
Morris  was  conscious  when  her  fingers  touched 
the  keys,  and  he  took  up  his  bow  and  drew  it 
across  the  strings  of  his  violin,  that  they  en- 
tered upon  a  new  and  boundless  universe  in 
which  sound  superseded  all  other  mediums  of 
communication,  and  seemed  to  take  the  place 
85 


An  American  Suffragette 

of  mere  mundane  sensation.  Whether  his  pas- 
sion for  Silvia  grew  out  of  their  music,  or  the 
wonder  of  the  music  was  a  result  of  the  perfect 
accord  of  their  natures,  he  could  not  tell.  They 
had  become  one  in  his  mind. 

He  fervently  hated  her  various  public  activi- 
ties. Here  again  the  ancestral  traits  domi- 
nated. He  thought  of  her  as  a  great  lady,  and 
being  that,  she  should  have  been  content  with- 
out anything  more.  Rushing  madly  about  do- 
ing things  for  other  people  implied  a  certain 
loss  of  caste.  But  until  the  previous  evening 
his  discontent  had  been  free  from  the  bitter 
draught  of  jealousy.  There  had  been  safety 
in  the  number  of  Miss  Holland's  admirers,  and 
when  he  was  surest  that  she  did  not  in  any  way 
return  his  feeling  for  her,  there  had  been  balm 
in  the  thought  that  she  was  too  busy  elevating 
the  condition  of  her  own  sex  to  have  much  time 
to  waste  upon  any  member  of  his.  Instinctively 
he  knew,  when  he  intercepted  the  first  look  be- 
tween the  lady  of  his  dreams  and  his  erstwhile 
college  associate,  that  the  hour  had  come  that 
he  had  dreaded.  Silvia  Holland  had  at  last 
met  a  man  whom,  consciously  or  unconsciously, 
she  acknowledged  king.  His  rival  was  there, 
upon  the  threshold  of  her  life,  and  he  was  a 
86 


Love,  Jealousy  and  Music 

rival  to  be  feared.  That  he  might  also  be  a 
rival  in  his  profession,  that  he  was  so  rich  that 
he  was  far  above  the  straits  in  which  Morris 
found  himself  more  and  more  frequently  in- 
volved, only  added  to  the  flame  that  consumed 
him;  life  without  Silvia  herself  would  be  dull, 
colorless,  objectless;  life  without  her  music 
would  be  but  "wind  along  the  waste." 

He  had  no  patience  with  the  theories  of  the 
newer  medical  practitioners  who  refuse  to  be 
frightened  by  the  cry  of  "professional  ethics" 
or  by  the  demand  that  practice  shall  be  "regu- 
lar" whether  the  patient  survives  or  not;  and 
yet  while  he  denounced  all  forms  of  mental 
therapeutics,  he  was  conscious  of  a  strain  of 
superstition  which  he  could  in  no  wise  over- 
come. Weird  folk-lore  and  uncanny  rites  kept 
up  by  some  of  the  primitive  people  of  Hungary 
had  had  a  strange  fascination  for  him  when  he 
was  abroad.  In  himself,  he  found  a  singular 
mixture  of  the  primeval  savage,  and  the  ultra 
refined  that  approaches  decadence.  Of  one 
thing  alone  he  was  certain.  To  lose  Silvia 
was  to  lose  his  soul;  without  her  there  was 
neither  here  nor  hereafter.  Ruthlessly  as  he 
had  brushed  aside  the  one  woman  in  his  life 
who  came  between  them,  he  was  prepared  to 
87 


An  American  Suffragette 

thrust  out  of  his  way  any  man  who  sought  to 
become  a  part  of  her  life. 

It  was  in  this  mood  that  he  entered  her  pres- 
ence, and  in  this  mood  he  accepted  her  amende 
honorable,,  which  she  made  with  charming  hu- 
mility, but  when  she  would  have  led  him  to  the 
music-room,  for  once  he  hesitated. 

"In  a  few  minutes,"  he  said,  "but  just  now 
there  is  something  I  must  say  to  you.  It  is 
true  that  I  was  deeply  hurt  last  night,  but  your 
regret,  so  graciously  expressed,  emboldens  me 
to  think  that  you  would  not  willingly  hurt  me." 
He  stopped,  and  she  looked  at  him  with  a 
rather  puzzled  air.  "We  have  been  friends 
for  a  great  while,"  he  said  irrelevantly. 

"Yes,"  she  said  cordially,  and  somewhat  re- 
lieved. "Haven't  we?  And  what  a  friendship 
it  has  been!  A  triangular  affair,  like  a  loving 
cup — you  and  I  and  some  one  of  the  great  mas- 
ters of  melody.  Shall  it  be  Chopin  to-night, 
or  shall  we  begin  with  something  lighter  and 
finish  with  the  Twelfth  Nocturne,  as  usual?" 

She  led  the  way,  and  stood  by  the  piano, 
rippling  her  fingers  over  the  keys,  and  he  stood 
before  her,  his  face  white  and  intense  with  feel- 
ing. He  laid  his  strong,  brown  fingers  over 
the  white  ones,  and  raised  them  to  his  lips,  and 
88 


Love,  Jealousy  and  Music 

Silvia  laughed  a  trifle  nervously.  It  was  one 
of  his  old-world  ways  that  she  liked,  but  disap- 
proved with  all  proper  democratic  fervor. 

"Has  it  indeed  been  a  loving  cup  from  which 
we  have  drunk?"  he  said,  with  passionate  sad- 
ness. "I  dare  not  think  so,  I  dare  not  even 
hope  so  much  grace!  And  yet  how  is  it  pos- 
sible that  a  man  should  feel  what  I  feel  for 
you  unless  there  is  a  response,  little  as  he  may 
deserve  it ' 

He  paused,  and  she  took  away  her  hand,  and 
laid  it  lightly  on  his  shoulder  as  he  sank  down 
on  the  seat  before  the  piano. 

"Please  don't,"  she  said  gently.  "Don't  you 
see  that  you  are  quite  right?  If  it  were  really, 
truly  love  that  had  come  to  you,  I  should  feel 
it  also,  there  could  be  no  question  of  doubting 
or  daring;  no  thought  of  hopelessness.  Some 
time  you  will  know  that  this  is  true,  when  some 
other  heart  speaks  to  yours  in  the  unmistakable 
tone  of  the  one  only  love  of  your  heart.  Each 
of  us  has  his  place  in  life,  and  in  the  lives  of 
those  with  whom  we  come  in  contact.  No  one 
can  ever  have  your  place;  I  can't  tell  you  how 
much  rest  and  happiness  you  have  brought  me 
when  I  have  been  a-weary  of  this  world.  Come, 
89 


An  American  Suffragette 

Orrin,  don't  rob  me  of  my  friend  that  I  may 
lose  a  lover." 

By  a  herculean  effort  he  restrained  his  feel- 
ings, and  answered  lightly,  "You  shall  keep 
your  friend,  my  sorceress  of  song,"  but  he 
added  under  his  breath,  "Look  to  it,  when  the 
lover  comes,  for  you  may  still  lose  him"  Then 
he  took  up  his  violin,  and  the  night  became  a 
splendid  harmony,  despite  the  discord  that 
raged  in  his  soul. 


90 


CHAPTER   X 

A  DISCUSSION  OF  PROGRESSIVE  WOMEN 

THE  group  that  had  foregathered  about 
Mrs.  Ramsey's  tea-table  that  Thursday  after- 
noon had  scattered  and  gone  its  several  ways. 
The  last  of  them  was  bidding  her  adieu  as  her 
husband  entered  and  joined  her  brothers,  who 
were  lingering  for  a  farewell  word  with  her, 
each  occupied  in  characteristic  fashion,  John 
gazing  into  the  fire  that  smouldered  on  the 
grate,  for  it  was  a  raw  and  chilly  afternoon, 
and  Frank  endeavoring  to  coax  a  last  cup  of 
tea  from  the  silver  tea-ball  and  the  still  steam- 
ing kettle. 

"If  you  really  want  another  cup,  Frank,  let 
me  have  the  tea-ball  refilled,"  Mrs.  Ramsey 
said,  and  then  laying  her  hand  on  her  elder 
brother's  shoulder,  "A  new  Lincoln  penny  for 
your  thoughts,  Jack.  You  look  as  if  they 
might  be  romantic,  but  I  suppose  you  are  really 
91 


An  American  Suffragette 

off  on  the  quest  of  the  blooming  bacillus  or 
the  meandering  microbe,  or  hanging  over — 
what  is  it  you  call  your  garden  beds  of  dis- 
ease— a  culture?" 

He  looked  up  and  patted  her  hand.  "It  is 
too  bad  not  to  be  able  to  be  a  hero  to  one's  own 
sister,  but  the  truth  is,  I  wasn't  thinking  at  all, 
just  wool-gathering.  By  the  way,  Frank,  are 
you  going  to  motor  down  to  that  meeting  of 
Miss  Holland's  to-night?" 

"Wool-gathering,  he  calls  it!"  said  the 
younger  man,  letting  his  lump  of  sugar  clatter 
on  his  saucer.  "I'd  say  it  was  all  cry  and  no 
wool;  at  least  you  are  pulling  none  over  my 
eyes.  Am  I  going  to  motor  down  to  hear  the 
protests  of  the  proletariat  to-night?  No,  dear 
brother,  I  am  not.  When  I  go  out  to  mingle 
with  the  down-trodden  and  oppressed  I  take 
the  *L' ;  a  surface  car  would  be  even  more  ap- 
propriate, but  they  take  forever,  and  I  com- 
promise on  the  'L,'  but  you  never  did  have 
any  sense  of  dramatic  fitness." 

"Might  I  ask  why  this  sudden  interest  in  the 
militant  laboring  ladies?"  said  Ramsey,  draw- 
ing up  his  chair  before  the  fire,  and  lighting  a 
cigarette.  "Are  you  going  to  obtrude  your 
somewhat  massive  personality  upon  the  scene?" 
92 


A  Discussion  of  Progressive  Women 

"Yes,  that's  what  I'd  like  to  know,"  added 
Frank. 

The  doctor  laughed  rather  diffidently.  "Why 
not?"  he  said.  "Why  shouldn't  I  go,  if  I  wish 
to?" 

Frank  flung  out  his  hands  with  a  gesture  of 
mock  despair.  "Now,  wouldn't  that  come  and 
get  you!"  he  said.  "I  appeal  to  you,  Hilda. 
You  were  present;  you  heard  Miss  Holland 
invite  me  to  this  Manifesto  Makers'  meeting. 
You  know  she  never  said  a  word  to  Jack;  she 
didn't  even  look  at  him.  He  was  foolish  enough 
to  let  her  see  that  he  was  already  a  convert  to 
her  little  gospel,  and  therefore  no  longer  in 
need  of  her  ministrations.  But  as  for  me,  'I 
was  a  wandering  sheep ;  I  did  not  love  the  fold,' 
and  hence,  as  a  good  missionary,  she  feels  a 
deep  interest  in  me.  Off  and  on,  I  should  say 
at  least  fifty  Colorado  women  have  tried  to 
make  a  suffragist  of  me.  Some  of  them  were 
very  pretty,"  he  added  reminiscently,  "and  I've 
noticed  that  the  prettier  they  are  the  longer  it 
takes  'em  to  make  me  see  the  error  of  my  ways. 
Xow  with  Miss  Holland,  I  wouldn't  mind  let- 
ting her  tinker  with  my  political  views  so  long 
as  we  both  shall  live." 

"Frank,  you  are  incorrigible,"  said  his  sister. 
93 


An  American  Suffragette 

"If  Miss  Holland  knew  what  a  flighty,  incon- 
sequent infant  you  are,  she  wouldn't  waste  a 
thought  on  you,  let  alone  a  whole  evening. 
What  makes  you  want  to  go,  anyhow?" 

"What's  the  use  of  her  wasting  thoughts  on 
a  solemn  dub  like  our  brother?"  he  demanded 
aggrievedly.  "What  business  has  he  trailing 
the  soap-boxing  suffragers  around  when  he  is 
about  to  take  upon  himself  vows  to  cleave  only 
to  the  daughter  of  a  militant  "Anti"  leader, 
some  time  when  he  can  jar  himself  loose  from 
his  professional  cares  long  enough  for  a  honey- 
moon?" 

"I'm  afraid,  Jack,  you  will  find  your  pros- 
pective mother-in-law  quite  as  strenuous  as  the 
most  ardent  of  the  suffragists,"  said  his  sister. 
"I  haven't  gone  into  this  thing  at  all,  I  haven't 
time,  but  it  is  certainly  amusing  to  watch  the 
"Antis"  outdo  even  the  most  ardent  suffra- 
gettes by  way  of  proving  their  contention  that 
woman's  sphere  is  home.  If  they  were  con- 
sistent, they  would  never  appear  in  public " 

"Except  by  'Now  comes  the  counsel  for  the 
defendant,'"  interrupted  Frank,  "but  they 
never  are.  There  is  a  little  bunch  of  them  in 
Colorado  who  have  failed  to  command  the  same 
attention  in  politics  that  their  money  imposes 


A  Discussion  of  Progressive  Women 

upon  the  social  world,  so  they  rush  into  type 
and  get  themselves  interviewed  and  asked  to 
speak  when  they  come  East,  all  by  way  of 
proving  their  sensitive  and  shrinking  nature. 
I  don't  agree  with  the  suffragists,  not  a  little 
bit,  but  I  can  fraternize  with  them;  they  are 
sincere,  but  none  of  the  'Antis'  for  me;  never 
saw  one  yet  who  wasn't  either  a  snob  or  so  nar- 
row-minded that  a  toothpick  would  look  like 
the  Brooklyn  Bridge  by  comparison." 

"Hear,  hear!"  cried  Jack.  "Miss  Holland 
has  certainly  made  an  impression  upon  you; 
not  that  I  see  what  difference  it  makes,  since 
women  already  vote  where  you  hail  from." 

"That  just  goes  to  show  how  foolish  a  smart 
man  can  be,"  replied  his  brother  cheerfully. 
"You  think  because  you  may  have  a  vote  on 
the  enfranchisement  of  women  that  it  is  very 
important  what  you  think,  but  is  it?  Not  at 
all.  But  with  me  it  is  different.  I've  paid 
office  rent  in  Denver  for  two  years,  and  spent 
a  third  of  the  time  here  or  in  Washington.  I've 
looked  in  on  two  State  conventions,  and  forgot 
to  register  at  the  last  election,  but  because  I 
come  from  Colorado  I  am  considered  an  au- 
thority on  woman  suffrage,  and  when  I  say  it's 
no  good,  and  swell  out  my  chest  and  look 
95 


An  American  Suffragette 

gloomy,  it  has  great  weight,  great  weight!" 
He  leaned  back  in  his  chair  and  gave  way  to 
unseemly  mirth  as  he  recalled  some  occasion 
on  which  he  had  evidently  hoaxed  some  trusting 
reporter. 

"Nonsense,  Frank,"  his  brother-in-law  an- 
swered. "I  don't  believe  you  know  the  first 
thing  about  politics  or  suffrage,  or  what  the 
women  have  done  or  haven't  done." 

"There  you  wrong  me,"  the  young  man  an- 
swered gravely.  "The  first  thing  to  know  in 
politics  is  when  to  come  into  the  game  and  when 
to  keep  out.  Personally,  I  can't  make  my 
firm  believe  that  it  is  cheaper  to  buy  the  other 
fellows*  men  after  they  are  elected  than  it  is 
to  try  to  elect  our  own,  and  have  them  raise 
the  ante  on  us,  but  they'll  come  to  it  after 
a  while.  As  to  the  women,  bless  you,  voting 
doesn't  change  their  nature,  and  so  long  as 
women  are  willing  to  believe  what  men  tell 
them,  it's  mighty  unsafe  to  trust  them  with  the 
ballot.  Before  you  know  it,  they'll  find  us 
out,  and  then  you'll  see  the  first  result  of  the 
suffragist  dream  of  heaven  on  earth — there'll 
be  no  more  marrying  or  giving  in  marriage. 
Oh,  I'm  dead  against  it!" 

They  all  joined  in  the  laughter  that  followed 
96' 


A  Discussion  of  Progressive  Women 

this  sally,  and  Hilda  said  thoughtfully,  "If 
you  boys  are  intent  on  this  meeting,  I'll  hurry 
dinner,  for  they  probably  begin  early."  As 
she  rose  to  go,  Frank  caught  her  hand  with 
the  piteous  entreaty,  "Oh,  please  make  my  big 
brother  take  his  marbles  and  go  home.  He 
wasn't  asked  to  this  party.  Miss  Holland 
didn't  say  a  thing  to  him.  I  don't  see  why  he 
has  to  have  first  show  with  all  the  pretty  girls 
in  New  York!" 

"When  Miss  Holland  knows  you,  and  all 
your  native  charm,  she  will  never  smile  again 
upon  your  older  brother,"  laughed  his  sister, 
"but  in  the  meantime  I  suppose  it's  an  open 
meeting,  and  we  can't  prevent  his  going.  But 
don't  worry;  his  fatal  beauty  will  but  serve  as 
a  foil  to  your  more  sparkling  type.  Besides, 
with  your  vivid  imagination,  unhampered  by 
a  slavish  subserviency  to  facts,  you  should  be 
able  to  furnish  canards  that  will  occupy  all  Miss 
Holland's  time  for  a  month." 

As  she  left  the  room  her  husband  opened  the 
door,  and  her  brothers  rose  and  remained  stand- 
ing until  it  was  closed  after  her. 

"If  all  women  were  like  her "  Frank 

said  impulsively,  but  Ramsey  stopped  him. 

"If  half  of  them  were  like  her,"  he  said  rev- 
97 


An  American  Suffragette 

erently,  "I  would  be  in  favor  of  turning  the 
government  over  to  them,  certain  that  the  hand 
that  rocks  the  cradle  would  never  give  this 
storm-tossed  old  world  more  shaking  up  than 
is  good  for  it." 


98 


CHAPTER    XI 

THE  ADVANCING   COLUMN   OF  DEMOCRACY 

As  the  two  brothers  turned  into  the  cross 
street  that  led  to  the  hall  where  the  Industrial 
League  had  its  headquarters  and  held  its 
weekly  meetings,  Dr.  Earl  laid  his  hand  on 
Frank's  shoulder. 

"Dear  old  fellow,"  he  said  affectionately, 
"would  you  mind  telling  me  what  on  earth  pos- 
sesses you  to  come  down  here  to-night?  I'm 
not  asking  out  of  mere  curiosity,  nor  do  I  be- 
lieve that  is  the  motive  that  brings  you." 

"Then  if  I  say  the  pursuit  of  the  good,  the 
true  and  the  beautiful,  you  will  not  believe 
me?"  his  brother  answered  lightly. 

"I  shall  know  you  do  not  wish  to  tell  me  the 
real  reason,  and  will  drop  it,  but  I  shall  not 
be  deceived.  I  haven't  studied  my  kind  for 
this  long  without  knowing  at  least  the  a-b-c 
of  human  nature.  You  use  your  cap  and  bells 
and  an  air  of  frivolity  to  conceal  your  true  char- 


An  American  Suffragette 

acter  from  the  world,  as  other  men  cloak  them- 
selves in  an  atmosphere  of  austerity  and 
reserve." 

"Discovered!"  cried  Frank,  with  a  laugh, 
"after  all  these  years  in  which  I  flattered  my- 
self I  had  made  such  a  good  job  of  it,  too. 
Truth  to  tell,  no  mask  and  domino  ever  af- 
forded such  perfect  protection  as  the  jingle  of 
my  jester's  bells.  I  am  apparently  so  given 
up  to  pomps  and  vanities  that  nobody  gives 
me  credit  for  a  serious  thought,  and  so  takes 
no  pains  to  conceal  his  own  from  me.  It  has 
long  been  one  of  the  wonders  of  my  world  how 
I  hold  my  job." 

"Well,  since  you  put  it  that  way,  I  have 
asked  myself  at  times  how  you  have  achieved 
the  standing  you  have  in  your  profession,  a 
standing  of  which  we  are  all  immensely  proud, 
by  the  way.  But  if  you  are  a  profound  student, 
it  is  something  recent;  I  used  to  think  you 
learned  too  easily  ever  to  know  how  to  study, 
and  law  is  a  vocation." 

"Law  is  one  thing  and  success  in  the  legal 
profession  is  another,"  said  the  young  man 
oracularly.  "Between  our  omnipresent  legis- 
latures which  spend  our  time  and  money  re- 
pealing what  we  lawyers  already  know,  and 
100 


The  Advancing  Column  of  Democracy 

enacting  laws  for  the  courts  to  set  aside,  these 
are  what  might  be  called  parlous  times  for  the 
profession,  but  my  long  suit  is  not  in  under- 
standing statutes,  but  people." 

Insensibly  he  had  dropped  his  flippant  tone, 
and  was  speaking,  seriously,  with  conviction. 
There  was  a  moment's  pause  and  then  Jack 
said,  "And  you  go  to  this  meeting  be- 
cause  ?" 

"Because,  little  as  I  like  it,  I  am  not  such  a 
fool  that  I  do  not  know  that  the  enfranchise- 
ment of  women  is  certain,  and  it  may  help  me 
to  understand  the  new  and  troublesome  ele- 
ment which  is  to  be  injected  into  public  life  if 
I  watch  the  workings  from  the  beginning. 
Anyhow,  it  is  part  of  my  business  to  under- 
stand these  things,  and  hence  my  acceptance 
of  Miss  Holland's  invitation.  This  is  the 
place,  isn't  it?" 

The  house  differed  in  no  wise  from  the  rest 
of  the  block,  save  in  its  air  of  thrift  and  cleanli- 
ness, and  the  brass  plate  on  the  door  bore  the 
name,  "Industrial  League  House."  It  was 
evidently  a  settlement  with  resident  workers, 
for  a  troop  of  boys  was  straggling  down  into 
the  basement,  where  a  gymnasium  had  been 
established,  and  several  young  women  were 
101 


An  American  Suffragette 

standing  in  the  hall  discussing  some  matter 
connected  with  sterilized  milk.  At  the  right 
of  the  wide  hall  there  was  a  large,  old-fashioned 
double  parlor,  with  plenty  of  chairs  for  a  meet- 
ing of  sixty  or  seventy  people,  and  perhaps  half 
that  many  were  already  in  the  room.  They 
were  singing  as  the  two  men  entered,  and  Dr. 
Earl  and  Frank  stood  in  the  hallway  listening 
to  the  words  sung  to  the  soul-stirring  old  tune 
of  "John  Brown's  Body." 

"These  are  they  who  build  thy  houses,  weave  thy 

raiment,  win  thy  wheat, 
Smooth  the  rugged,  fill  the  barren,  turn  the  bitter 

into  sweet; 

All  for  thee  this  day — and  ever.    What  reward  for 
them  is  meet? 

Till  the  host  comes  marching  on." 

As  they  struck  into  the  chorus,  the  boys 
downstairs  took  up  the  swelling  chords,  and 
it  was  echoed  from  the  street  beyond. 

"Hark,  the  rolling  of  the  thunder ; 
Lo,  the  sun !  and  lo !  thereunder 
Riseth  wrath,  and  hope,  and  wonder, 
And  the  host  comes  marching  on." 

"I  wonder  whether  they  sing  the  sixth  stan- 
za," said  Frank  curiously.    Jack  looked  at  him 
102 


The  Advancing  Column  of  Democracy 

in  amazement.  "What  is  the  song?"  he  asked, 
conscious  that  he  was  getting  new  sidelights 
upon  his  younger  brother's  character  this 
evening. 

"It's  William  Morris'  'March  of  the  Work- 
ers/ and  the  verse  I'm  talking  about  begins, 
'O,  ye  rich  men,  hear  and  tremble.'  Come  on 
in,  Jack,"  and  a  moment  later  John  Earl  heard 
his  brother's  beautiful  voice  take  up  the  words : 

"Many    a    hundred    years,  passed  over,   have   they 

labored  deaf  and  blind; 
Never  tidings  reached  their  sorrow,  never  hope  their 

toil  might  find. 

Now  at  last  they've  heard  and  hear  it,  and  the  cry 
comes  down  the  wind 

And  their  feet  are  marching  on. 

"On  we  march,  then,  we,  the  workers,  and  the  rumor 

that  ye  hear 

Is  the  blended  sound  of  battle  and  deliv'rance  draw- 
ing near ; 

For  the  hope  of  every  creature  is  the  banner  that  we 
bear, 

And  the  world  is  marching  on." 

Silvia  Holland  turned  quickly  when  she 
heard  the  strong,  unknown  voice  join  in  the 
ringing  words,  and  fairly  gasped  when  she  saw 
that  it  was  Frank  Earl  who  was  singing,  while 
his  brother  looked  at  her  with  an  air  as  be- 
103 


An  American  Suffragette 

wildered  as  her  own.  The  moment  that  the 
song  was  concluded  she  greeted  them,  and 
found  them  comfortable  seats  where  they  could 
see  and  hear  without  being  too  conspicuous. 

"We  like  to  have  men  come  to  our  meetings, 
and  a  few  generally  drop  in.  I  expect  several 
to-night,  for  we  have  a  speaker  from  Colorado, 
but  we  don't  often  have  the  luxury  of  a  bari- 
tone note  for  our  music,  so  we  owe  you  a  special 
vote  of  thanks,  Mr.  Earl,"  she  said  to  Frank. 

He  bowed.  "Oh,  no;  it's  the  other  way 
about,"  he  said  lightly.  "You  don't  know  how 
grateful  I  am  to  you  for  not  singing  the  'Day 
of  Wrath'  verse,  in  which  all  of  us  who  haven't 
succeeded  in  swearing  off  our  taxes  hear  what 
is  coming  to  us.  How  well  that  girl  presides," 
he  added,  as  a  businesslike  young  woman  dis- 
patched the  reading  and  adoption  of  minutes 
and  the  reports  of  committees  without  a  hitch 
or  a  moment's  useless  delay. 

"That  is  Florence  Dresser,"  explained  Miss 
Holland.  "She  is  one  of  the  leaders  in  the 
Laundry  Girls'  Association.  The  secretary," 
indicating  a  young  woman  who  might  have 
been  a  twelve-year-old  child,  save  for  her  sad, 
careworn  face,  "has  nearly  killed  herself  sew- 
ing for  sweaters  to  take  care  of  her  family; 
104 


The  Advancing  Column  of  Democracy 

we've  found  homes  for  the  children  and  she 
lives  here  now;  we  are  trying  to  make  up  to 
her  for  the  lost  years,  but  it  is  hard  work," 
and  she  sighed. 

"We  have  one  meeting  a  month  when  we 
have  a  program,"  Miss  Holland  explained. 
"At  the  other  three  we  consider  various  phases 
of  industrial  life  as  it  affects  our  own  member- 
ship or  women  in  general.  I  am  rather  sorry 
that  this  happens  to  be  a  program  night,  for 
you  would  have  had  a  better  idea  of  the  scope 
we  try  to  cover  at  the  other  kind,  but  perhaps 
this  will  be  more  entertaining."  She  turned 
more  directly  to  Frank.  "A  business  meeting 
here  always  makes  me  think  of  the  'Antis,'  and 
their  twaddle  about  woman's  sphere,  which  they 
would  like  to  reduce  to  a  demi-hemisphere." 

Frank  nodded.  "Of  course  there's  nothing 
to  that  with  intelligent  people  now;  woman's 
sphere  is  wherever  she  can  make  good,  but  I 
think  it  is  a  pity  that  she  has  to  take  so  large 
a  place  in  the  industrial  world,  and  I  don't 
believe  that  voting  will  help  her." 

"But  it  has  helped  men,"  Miss  Holland  re- 
plied quickly. 

"Not  half  so  much  as  their  unions,"  he  an- 
105 


An  American  Suffragette 

swered.  "The  thing  that  helps  is  getting  to- 
gether and  standing  together." 

"Now  you've  lost  your  whole  case,"  laughed 
Dr.  Earl.  "There  has  never  been  anything 
that  brought  all  sorts  and  conditions  of  women 
together  like  the  suffrage  cause.  You  see  that 
in  England.  In  fact,  you  see  it  everywhere. 
Women  are  waking  up,  and  getting  to  their 
feet  and  stretching  out  their  hands — to  us? 
Not  at  all,  to  each  other." 

"Oh,  I  wish  you'd  say  that  to  my  comrades 
here,"  said  Miss  Holland.  "We  should  all 
be  so  glad  to  hear  you.  Will  you  not  let  me 
present  you  for  a  few  minutes  during  the  in- 
formal discussion?" 

For  an  instant  he  wavered,  then  the  face  of 
Leonora  flashed  before  him,  and  he  shook  his 
head  decisively.  "I'm  too  new  at  this  sort  of 
thing,"  he  answered.  "Get  my  brother  here  to 
talk  to  you  about  Colorado,  and  let  the  audi- 
ence heckle  him." 

"We'd  be  delighted,"  laughed  Miss  Holland. 
"The  lady  who  is  to  conduct  the  question  box, 
which  is  the  main  thing  to-night,  comes  from 
Denver.  Her  name  is  Carroll  Renner;  do  you 
happen  to  know  her?  Will  she  be  able  to  hold 
106 


The  Advancing  Column  of  Democracy 

her  own?  Sometimes  they  ask  pretty  sharp 
questions." 

"Don't  give  yourself  a  moment's  uneasi- 
ness," Frank  answered.  "There'll  be  no  twelve 
baskets  needed  to  remove  the  fragments  of  the 
contumacious  when  she  gets  through.  A  small 
blotter  will  answer." 

"You  know  her  very  well,  then?"  Miss  Hol- 
land said,  openly  surprised. 

"Rather,"  he  answered  laconically.  "She  is 
the  most  persistent  lobbyist  in  the  State,  and 
she  infallibly  discovers  the  one  deadly  section 
in  a  bill  that  you  thought  so  well  hidden  that 
no  one  would  ever  notice  it.  She's  the  most 
troublesome  woman  I  know  and  the  best 
fellow." 

Miss  Holland  and  Dr.  Earl  both  turned  and 
looked  at  the  little  woman,  who  had  come  in  a 
few  minutes  before  with  a  party  of  people,  with 
added  interest.  She  was  very  simply  gowned 
in  black,  and  but  for  a  certain  twinkle  of  the 
dark  gray  eyes,  and  a  rather  mocking  smile, 
there  was  nothing  particularly  distinctive  about 
her. 

"Tell  me  some  more,"  said  Miss  Holland 
curiously.  "Sometimes  the  voting  woman  helps 
and  sometimes  she  hurts;  if  they're  freaky, 
107 


An  American  'Suffragette 

and  of  course  some  of  them  are,  they  hurt 
dreadfully." 

"I've  seen  her  a  good  deal  while  I've  been 
watching  the  Senate,"  he  said.  "I'd  been  out 
there  for  several  sessions  of  the  General  As- 
sembly before  I  located  there.  She  came  in 
one  day  with  a  letter  from  some  national  wom- 
an's organization — wanted  the  Beveridge  Child 
Labor  Law  endorsed,  I  think.  Anyhow,  time 
was  of  the  essence  of  the  contract,  so  we  drew 
up  a  concurrent  resolution,  and  she  got  a  Re- 
publican and  a  Democrat  to  introduce  it  to- 
gether, and  it  slid  along  on  its  way  to  Wash- 
ington within  forty-eight  hours ;  she  and  a  Mrs. 
Platt  worked  it  together.  All  they  said  was 
that  the  women  wanted  it." 

Miss  Holland  gasped.    "Go  on,"  she  said. 

He  lowered  his  voice,  for  the  president  was 
introducing  a  handsome  girl  who  was  to  give 
a  reading. 

"Another  time  there  was  a  bill — I  don't  rec- 
ollect it,  but  something  about  committing  girl 
prisoners,  or  something  of  the  sort;  I  saw  her 
get  pretty  white,  and  shut  her  lips  hard,  and 
then  she  got  up  and  started  to  walk  out,  and 
one  of  the  Senators  saw  her,  too.  'Say,  you 
don't  like  that  bill?'  he  said,  and  she  answered, 
108 


The  Advancing  Column  of  Democracy 

as  if  she  could  hardly  control  her  anger,  'It's 
infamous!'  'Oh,  it  is,  is  it?'  he  said.  'Well, 
then,  we'll  make  them  adjourn  over  until  we 
can  get  a  conference  and  amend  the  thing.'  No 
fuss,  no  talk;  just  straight  goods.  That's 
Carroll  Renner." 

"And  that's  what  it  means  to  be  an  enfran- 
chised woman!"  said  Miss  Holland,  with  a  long 
breath.  "None  of  us  could  do  that  here!" 

"Well,  that's  part  of  it,"  acquiesced  Frank, 
and  then  they  listened  silently.  The  girl  who 
was  reading  was  not  particularly  well-trained, 
but  there  were  passion  and  pathos  in  her  voice 
as  she  told  the  story  of  the  eaglet,  chained  to 
a  log  for  fear  it  might  fall  if  permitted  to  at- 
tempt to  fly. 

"We  also  have  our  dream  of  a  Garden,"  the 
strong  young  voice  went  on.  "But  it  lies  in  a 
distant  future.  We  dream  that  woman  shall  eat 
of  the  tree  of  knowledge  together  with  man, 
and  that  side  by  side  and  hand  close  to  hand, 
through  ages  of  much  toil  and  labor,  they  shall 
together  raise  about  them  an  Eden  nobler  than 
any  the  Chaldean  dreamed  of;  an  Eden  created 
by  their  own  labor  and  made  beautiful  by  their 
own  fellowship. 

"In  his  Apocalypse  there  was  one  who  saw 
109 


An  American  Suffragette 

a  new  heaven  and  a  new  earth;  we  see  a  new 
earth;  but  therein  dwells  love — the  love  of 
comrades  and  co-workers. 

"It  is  because  so  wide  and  gracious  to  us 
are  the  possibilities  of  the  future,  so  impossible 
is  a  return  to  the  past,  so  deadly  is  a  passive 
acquiescence  in  the  present,  that  to-day  we  are 
found  everywhere  raising  our  strange  new  cry, 
'Labor,  and  the  training  that  fits  us  for 
labor!' " 

"You  recognize  it,  of  course?"  Silvia  said  to 
Dr.  Earl,  but  he  shook  his  head,  and  Frank  an- 
swered, "It's  Olive  Schreiner,  isn't  it?  She 
does  good  work,  but  I've  never  read  anything 
that  compared  with  that  book  on  "Woman  and 
Economics,"  and  when  an  American  writer 
has  the  whole  world  sitting  up  and  taking  no- 
tice, I  don't  see  why  we  don't  boost  her  game." 

There  was  a  little  buzz  and  stir  while  slips 
of  paper  and  pencils  were  distributed  to  the 
audience,  and  the  questions  collected  for  the 
next  speaker. 

The  presiding  officer  made  the  usual  prelimi- 
nary remarks,  and  introduced  Miss  Renner, 
who  gathered  up  the  goodly  sheaf  of  white  slips 
in  her  hands  and  ran  over  them  as  if  looking 
for  some  query  that  would  make  a  specially 
110 


The  Advancing  Column  of  Democracy 

apt  beginning.  Her  face  lit  up  as  she  came 
across  one  with  which  she  was  evidently 
familiar. 

"This  is  a  favorite  question  of  mine,"  she 
said  cheerfully.  "I  should  miss  it  dreadfully  if 
it  failed  to  turn  up,  but  it  is  such  a  troublesome 
and  comprehensive  question  to  answer  that  I 
have  set  the  reply  to  music,  and  will  have  it 
sung  for  you,  in  order  that  you  may  all  remem- 
ber it.  The  question  is,  'What  have  Colorado 
women  done  with  the  ballot?'  I  don't,  myself, 
consider  that  a  fair  question,  since  none  of  us 
come  down  to  Philadelphia  or  New  York  or 
Pittsburg  or  any  of  the  other  cities  of  sweet- 
ness and  light  and  ask  what  you  men  have  done 
with  your  all-powerful  vote,  but  this  seems  to 
be  the  main  one,  especially  to  the  masculine 
mind." 

Dr.  Earl  laughed,  for  he  had  written  the 
question,  and  seating  herself  at  the  piano,  Miss 
Renner  looked  up  at  a  merry-faced  girl,  who 
began  singing  to  her  rippling  accompaniment 
a  song  of  miraculous  changes  which  should 
have  ensued  upon  woman's  enfranchisement, 
and  concluded  with  a  long  chant,  recounting 
some  of  the  more  notable  achievements  of  the 
voting  woman,  ranging  all  the  way  from  joint 
111 


An  American  Suffragette 

ownership  of  children  and  property,  minimum 
salary  laws,  juvenile  courts,  medical  inspection 
of  school  children,  State  institutions  built  and 
endowed,  equality  in  inheritance  and  a  host  of 
other  things,  up  to  the  adoption  by  her  State 
of  the  initiative  and  referendum. 

After  that,  Miss  Renner  had  her  audience 
with  her  until  she  dropped  the  last  twist  of 
paper  on  the  table  beside  her.  "You  ask  me 
why  it  took  us  so  many  years  to  pass  a  good 
law  regulating  child  labor,  and  why  we  have 
failed  in  limiting  the  hours  of  woman's  labor. 
As  to  the  first,  it  is  true  that  our  law  was  by 
no  means  equal  to  yours,  but  we  had  the  means 
to  enforce  it,  and  as  a  consequence  we  have  lit- 
tle or  no  child  labor.  You  have  a  good  statute, 
one  of  the  best  in  the  Union" — there  was  a 
ripple  of  applause — "but  in  addition  to  this 
excellent  law  prohibiting  child  labor,"  she  went 
on  evenly,  "you  have  in  this  city  alone  over 
twenty  thousand  child  wage-earners. 

"When  we  have  gone  to  our  legislatures 
asking  for  laws  for  the  protection  of  the  weak, 
we  have  generally  obtained  them  easily,  when 
they  did  not  interfere  with  'big  business.'  It 
took  Illinois  women  nine  years  to  get  a  State 
112 


The  Advancing  Column  of  Democracy 

Home  for  children.  We  passed  such  a  law 
without  any  effort  whatever.  In  two-thirds  of 
the  States  of  the  Union  women  are  trying  to 
make  mothers  co-equal  guardians  of  their  chil- 
dren, and  trying  in  vain.  That  was  the  first 
law  our  enfranchised  women  wrote  upon  our 
statute  books.  One  only  learns  to  understand 
these  things  by  experience.  You  may  find  it 
hard  to  see  why  railroads  should  go  into  a  deal 
to  defeat  an  eight-hour  law  for  women,  but  that 
statute  was  flagged  by  a  Pullman  palace  car 
towel  and  fell  asleep  at  the  switch,  because  that 
company  complained  that  it  couldn't  get  a 
change  of  sheets  unless  laundry  girls  could  be 
compelled  to  work  overtime.  You  don't  dream 
when  you  talk  of  'big  business'  to  what  little 
business  it  will  descend." 

There  was  a  sudden  hush,  and  she  flung  out 
her  hands  with  an  impulsive  gesture,  and  there 
was  a  passionate  earnestness  in  her  voice  that 
gripped  her  hearers.  "Let  me  tell  you  some- 
thing you  do  not  know  when  you  hold  the 
women  in  the  suffrage  States  responsible  for 
conditions  they  are  the  first  to  deplore.  A 
handful  of  men  in  this  city  have  more  to  do 
with  Western  industries  and  their  regulation 
113 


An  American  Suffragette 

than  have  both  the  men  and  women.  We  have 
steel  works ;  their  policy  is  dictated  from  lower 
Broadway.  We  have  smelters ;  they  are  closed 
at  the  order  of  a  syndicate  in  this  city.  We 
have  railroads,  all  of  them  controlled  by  your 
fellow  citizens,  and  it  was  the  deals  entered  into 
between  the  representatives  of  these  interests 
and  our  local  corporations  that  defeated  the 
eight-hour  law  for  women,  and  every  bit  of 
reform  legislation  pledged  to  the  people.  It 
was  this  condition,  this  failure  of  alleged  de- 
mocracy, that  made  us  go  on  record  for  real 
democracy,  for  the  initiative  that  makes  it  pos- 
sible for  us  to  enact  the  laws  our  representatives 
are  cajoled  into  pigeon-holing,  for  the  refer- 
endum that  enables  us  to  scotch  the  snake  so 
that  the  people  may  have  a  chance  to  kill  it. 
This  was  the  first  great  fundamental  reform 
which  the  women  demanded,  and  it  was  owing 
to  the  work  of  education  they  began  twenty 
years  ago,  and  kept  up  untiringly,  that  Col- 
orado has  won  this  great  victory.  Woman 
suffrage  is  not  alone  for  women,  or  to  enable 
us  to  secure  certain  readjustments  of  law.  It 
is  for  our  country,  which  cannot  exist  half  en- 
franchised and  half  irresponsible,  half  democ- 
114 


The  Advancing  Column  of  Democracy 

racy  and  half  a  feudalism;  half  of  it  privileged 
to  shirk  or  exercise  its  civic  rights,  and  half 
denied  aught  but  the  burden  of  those  rights. 
Women  need  the  franchise  if  only  to  make 
their  influence,  of  which  we  hear  so  much,  ef- 
fective, but  more  than  they  need  the  ballot,  this 
nation  needs  the  active  devotion  of  its  women 
to  transmute  to  golden  fulfillment  its  leaden 
life ;  it  needs,  it  must  have  all  that  we  can  give 
it,  your  life  and  mine;  if  it  is  to  go  forward, 
its  sons  and  daughters  must  go  forward — 
together!" 

There  was  generous  applause,  and  the  two 
young  men  followed  Miss  Holland,  and  she 
presented  Dr.  Earl  and  was  about  to  introduce 
his  brother,  when  Miss  Renner  held  out  both 
hands  to  him. 

"Hast  thou  found  me,  O  mine  enemy,"  she 
cried.  "I'm  awfully  glad  to  see  you,  Frank. 
I  was  much  minded  to  tell  how  you  helped  me 
get  my  dove  bill  through,  but  I  feared  they 
might  hold  you  responsible  for  the  defeat  of 
the  eight-hour  law  and  turn  and  rend  you." 

"You  promised  never  to  reveal  any  of  my 
good  deeds,"  he  answered.  "Keep  it  out  of  the 
papers,  Miss  Holland.  I  can't  afford  to  lose 
115 


An  American  Suffragette 

prestige  as  the  exponent  of  the  Mammon  of 
Unrighteousness. ' ' 

"Unfortunately,  he  is  a  great  god  with  legis- 
latures, East  as  well  as  West,"  answered  Miss 
Holland,  and  then  they  all  went  out  together. 


116 


CHAPTER    XII 

A  TUBERCULAR  KNEE  AND  A  WORRIED  SURGEON 

DR.  EARL  found  his  hands  uncommonly  full 
for  the  next  few  weeks.  What  with  the  endless 
detail  attendant  upon  the  arrangements  for  his 
new  offices,  and  the  perfection  of  his  equip- 
ment, it  seemed  as  if  there  were  not  enough 
hours  in  the  day  to  meet  all  the  calls  upon  him. 
Leonora  looked  aggrieved,  and  Hilda  com- 
plained loudly  that  he  had  deserted  them. 

The  spectacular  manner  in  which  the  yel- 
lower part  of  the  New  York  press  had  handled 
his  first  case  after  his  return,  brought  him  tele- 
phone calls  and  personal  visits  from  many  old 
patients,  and  a  goodly  number  from  new  ones, 
not  to  mention  freaky  interviews  with  persons 
representing  all  sorts  of  cults.  He  was  asked 
to  address  half  a  dozen  different  branches  of 
the  New  Thought  movement.  The  Society  for 
the  Propagation  of  Esoteric  Buddhism  asked 
him  to  tell  them  of  his  experiences  in  Hin- 
117 


An  American  Suffragette 

doostan;  "Purple  Mother"  and  "Besant"  The- 
osophists  sent  committees  to  wait  on  him,  and 
various  believers  in  Spiritist  exploitations,  as- 
trologists,  psychometrists  and  all  sorts  and 
conditions  of  dabblers  in  occultism  pestered 
him  with  letters,  circulars  and  requests  of  every 
conceivable  nature. 

It  had  been  no  part  of  his  plan  to  return  to 
his  native  land  and  set  up  a  practice  by  which 
he  should  exploit  to  the  world  the  results  of  his 
study.  A  real  student,  he  knew  very  well  that 
a  lifetime  would  be  all  too  short  to  devote  to 
the  as  yet  but  little  known  field  of  mental  thera- 
peutics, and  nothing  could  have  been  more  for- 
eign to  his  character,  individually  or  profes- 
sionally, than  the  fanfare  of  trumpets  with 
which  his  return  had  been  heralded.  The  prin- 
ciples which  he  wished  to  prove  must  be  brought 
home  to  his  profession  if  they  were  to  be  of 
great  and  lasting  benefit,  and  the  publicity  and 
advertising  which  a  man  of  a  different  calibre 
might  have  enjoyed,  were  annoying  in  the  ex- 
treme to  Earl.  He  was  still  a  young  man,  and 
modest  withal,  and  he  felt  that  nothing  could 
be  more  detrimental  with  the  men  whose  regard 
he  wished  to  secure  and  hold,  so  he  declined  all 
invitations  to  speak,  all  requests  for  articles  or 
118 


A  Tubercular  Knee  and  Worried  Surgeon 

interviews,  and  gave  himself  up  to  getting  back 
into  the  harness.  His  patients,  both  old  and 
new,  took  up  more  time  than  he  could  have 
hoped  for,  and  before  the  middle  of  summer 
he  found  himself  not  only  well  launched  in  his 
profession,  but  with  all  that  he  could  possibly 
find  time  to  do,  and  work  piling  up  ahead  of 
him,  so  that  he  could  only  promise  indefinitely 
when  the  Ramseys  urged  him  to  come  down  to 
their  Newport  place,  and  Leonora  had  to  put 
up  with  fractions  of  Sundays  until  she  and  her 
mother  left  for  Bar  Harbor. 

There  were  times  when  that  young  lady  was 
by  no  means  certain  that  she  wished  to  marry 
a  successful  physician.  "You  wouldn't  like 
me  any  better  if  I  were  unsuccessful?"  he 
asked  teasingly,  but  she  came  back  to  her  point, 
and  he  had  to  explain  gravely  that  the  theories 
of  the  laboratory  must  be  worked  out  in  actual 
practice  before  they  can  be  transmuted  into 
accepted  facts. 

"But  you  don't  need  the  money,"  she  argued, 
trying  dimly  to  apply  some  of  the  principles 
which  he  was  fond  of  expounding.  It  seemed 
rather  hopeless,  but  with  infinite  patience  he 
sought  to  make  clear  to  her  that  any  human 
being  wHose  life  is  not  to  be  useless  and  profit- 
119 


An  American  Suffragette 

less  must  have  some  object  to  attain,  some  work 
to  do  which  will  develop  his  character.  When 
she  replied  that  he  had  character  enough,  and 
her  only  object  in  life  was  to  be  his  wife,  what 
more  was  there  to  say?  Flattery  at  once  so 
charming  and  so  complete  left  him  defenseless, 
and  he  kissed  her  and  went  away,  trying  not  to 
ask  himself  whether  a  legal  ceremony  could 
ever  make  wedded  souls  of  two  mortals  of  such 
diverse  views  of  life.  And  yet,  she  was  so 
sweet,  so  sweet! 

In  spite  of  the  many  other  demands  upon 
his  time,  Dr.  Earl  saw  his  first  patient  very 
frequently.  Mrs.  Bell  did  not  appear  cramped 
for  means,  and  provided  everything  that  could 
add  to  her  little  daughter's  comfort,  including 
not  a  few  luxuries,  which  Dr.  Earl  felt  con- 
vinced were  the  gift  of  Miss  Holland.  If  he 
had  vaguely  hoped  that  he  might  meet  her  at 
his  patient's  he  was  destined  to  disappointment. 
Once  her  car  arrived  just  as  he  was  leaving, 
and  another  time  they,  passed  on  the  stairs.  He 
told  himself  that  it  was  better  so,  and  yet  when 
he  took  her  hand,  and  felt  the  firm,  strong  fin- 
gers, well-knit  and  efficient,  for  no  soft,  yield- 
ing little  five-and-a-half  glove-wearer  ever 
compassed  Beethoven,  he  knew  that  hers  was 
120 


A  Tubercular  Knee  and  Worried  Surgeon 

a  nature  that  could  answer  to  his  own,  and  his 
hand  tightened  involuntarily.  There  was 
something  in  his  look  as  he  met  the  blue  eyes 
on  the  step  above  that  brought  the  warm  blood 
to  her  face,  and  she  swayed  toward  him  almost 
imperceptibly,  and  then  with  a  word  of  courte- 
ous greeting  went  on  her  way,  for  she  knew 
that  according  to  common  report  he  was  to 
marry  Miss  Kimball  that  fall.  Her  lip  curled 
a  little,  for  she  remembered  Leonora  of  old; 
she  knew  her  pink-and-white  prettiness  and  the 
few  and  simple  enfoldments  of  her  elementary 
little  brain,  just  large  enough  to  hold  a  few 
attractive  near-ideas,  a  thorough  comprehen- 
sion of  all  the  social  conventionalities,  and  a 
fixed  and  stubborn  conviction  as  to  what  was 
or  was  not  "smart."  "If  she  has  a  soul,"  Silvia 
said  to  herself  with  rather  unusual  heat,  "no 
one  could  tell  whether  it  is  in  a  condition  of 
arrested  development,  hopeless  atrophy  or  com- 
plete ossification.  As  well  seek  diamonds  in 
a  common  sandbank  as  inspiration  or  aspira- 
tion in  its  sawdusty  recesses."  Then  she 
laughed,  and  said,  "Cat!"  softly,  which  was 
really  most  irrelevant. 

The  day  that  the  cast  was  to  be  removed, 
Silvia  appeared  laden  with  good  things  that 
121 


An  American  Suffragette 

i 

they  might  celebrate  the  occasion  with  due 
ceremony. 

With  infinite  care  and  gentleness,  Dr.  Earl 
cut  down  through  the  cast,  and  took  it  off.  The 
fracture  was  perfectly  knit,  but  there  was  a 
slight  swelling  about  the  knee,  and  as  Earl 
examined  it  Silvia  saw  him  compress  his  lips 
in  a  hard,  straight  line.  Without  looking  up, 
or  changing  his  tone,  he  asked  the  child  if  she 
had  had  a  fall  since  the  cast  had  been  changed. 
She  answered  readily  that  about  a  week  before 
her  crutch  had  slipped  as  she  was  coming  in- 
doors, and  she  had  fallen,  striking  the  injured 
leg  against  the  stone  step,  and  she  winced  as  he 
touched  the  thin  knee. 

"It's  too  bad,"  he  said,  "but  there  will  have 
to  be  another  cast  about  this  knee,  and  you 
must  be  more  careful,  little  girl." 

The  tears  came  to  her  eyes,  and  her  mother 
turned  to  him  with  an  expression  of  anxiety. 
His  cheerful  face  reassured  her.  "We'll  hope 
it  won't  be  for  long,"  he  said,  "but  there's  no 
use  taking  chances.  Has  her  health  generalty 
been  good?"  he  asked  Mrs.  Bell. 

"The  diseases  common  to  childhood  went 
rather  hard  with  her  and  she  had  considerable 
122 


A  Tubercular  Knee  and  Worried  Surgeon 

trouble  with  her  neck  and  throat  a  few  years 
ago,"  Mrs.  Bell  replied. 

He  made  an  examination  of  the  glands  of 
her  neck,  but  said  no  more. 

In  spite  of  many  insistent  calls  elsewhere, 
Dr.  Earl  remained  long  enough  to  help  lend 
an  air  of  festivity  to  the  small  party,  which 
Silvia  presided  over  with  infinite  tact,  and 
with  a  last  admonition  to  Mrs.  Bell  to  keep  the 
little  girl  in  bed  until  he  came  again,  and  as 
quiet  as  possible,  he  took  his  departure,  and 
Silvia  went  with  him. 

"Tell  me  what  is  the  matter?"  she  said,  with 
her  usual  directness,  when  they  were  out  on 
the  street. 

"What  makes  you  think  anything  is?"  he 
parried. 

"I  beg  your  pardon,"  she  said,  a  trifle  coldly. 
"I  should  not  have  asked." 

He  turned  to  her  and  stopped,  mute  re- 
proach in  his  eyes.  "There  isn't  a  shadow  of 
doubt  that  tuberculosis  has  developed  in 
that  knee,  and  while  I  hope  to  arrest  it,  and 
perfect  a  cure  in  time,  I  am  very  anxious, 
nevertheless." 

"But  the  break  has  united?"  she  asked. 

"Oh,  yes,  and  that  goes  to  show  that  this  con- 
128 


An  American  Suffragette 

dition  is  very  recent,  and  mild,  but  with  her 
antecedent  history  no  one  can  tell  what  may 
happen,"  he  said. 

"Antecedent  history?"  Silvia  said,  rather 
puzzled.  "I  thought  you  did  not  know  the 
family?" 

"I  didn't,"  he  answered,  "but  you  may  re- 
member that  I  looked  very  carefully  at  the 
bruises  about  the  knee  when  I  set  the  leg,  and 
I  asked  Mrs.  Bell  some  general  questions  but 
received  no  very  definite  replies  until  to-day, 
and  what  you  heard  indicates  that  the  child  has 
already  had  a  slight  attack  of  tuberculosis.  I 
had  counted  on  my  treatment  to  overcome  the 
weakening  influences  of  confinement  to  bed  and 
crutch  for  so  long  a  time." 

Silvia  was  silent,  as  if  thinking  out  some 
plan,  and  said  suddenly,  "Then  it  will  all  re- 
solve itself  into  a  contest  between  health  and 
disease,  with  a  considerable  handicap  against 
the  patient?" 

"Yes,"  he  said.  "With  plenty  of  good  food 
and  good  air  and  the  right  kind  of  care,  there  is 
no  reason  why  she  should  not  win.  And  I  in- 
tend that  she  shall,"  he  concluded  energetically. 


124 


CHAPTER   XIII 

AN  ANTI-SUFFRAGE  MEETING 

DR.  EARL  redoubled  his  attentions  to  Leo- 
nora, determined  to  give  her  no  just  cause  for 
complaint.  The  doubts  that  had  beset  him 
disappeared,  for  no  one  could  be  more  charm- 
ing than  Leonora,  when  she  was  permitted  to 
follow  her  own  bent.  Her  mother  also  showed 
her  gratification  at  his  devotion,  and  tried,  with 
consummate  tact,  to  wean  him  away  from  his 
evident  partiality  for  the  suffrage  cause.  She 
gave  him  the  best  of  the  tracts  issued  by  the 
Anti- Suffrage  Society;  while  he  was  waiting 
for  his  offices  to  be  fitted  up,  she  took  him  to 
lectures  and  teas  and  receptions  where  anti- 
suffrage  sentiment  abounded,  and  tried  in  vari- 
ous ways  to  convince  him  of  the  superior  social 
status  of  the  "Anti"  women. 

The  culmination  was  reached,  however,  when 
he  escorted  her  and  Leonora  to  a  meeting  in 
a  large  theatre  one  afternoon.  They  were 
125 


An  American  Suffragette 

prominent  figures  in  one  of  the  boxes  nearest 
the  stage,  and  Silvia  Holland  and  Carroll  Ren- 
ner,  who  were  sitting  well  toward  the  rear  of 
the  parquet,  had  ample  opportunity  to  watch 
the  effect  of  the  meeting  upon  him. 

Frank  Earl,  who  had  come  in  directly  after- 
ward and  taken  a  seat  just  back  of  them,  leaned 
forward  and  talked  while  the  crowd  gathered. 
"Oh,  don't  mind  him,"  he  said,  when  Miss  Ren- 
ner  asked  if  that  were  not  his  brother  with  the 
anti-suffrage  leaders.  "He  can't  help  him- 
self, but  if  he  doesn't  go  away  from  here  ready 
to  enlist  under  Miss  Holland's  banner  I  miss 
my  count.  Even  I  should,  were  it  not  that  I 
have  seen  the  folly  of  it  all  on  its  native  heath. 
Don't  make  faces  at  me,  Carroll,  or  people  will 
know  you  are  a  suffragette." 

The  theatre  had  been  profusely  decorated 
with  flags,  flowers  and  bunting,  and  mottoes 
were  festooned  along  the  walls,  one  of  which 
was  "God  Bless  Our  Homes,"  and  another, 
"Imbecile  Children  Will  Be  the  Product  of 
Imbecile  Voting  Women." 

Dr.  Earl  was  much  impressed  with  the  audi- 
ence, which,  nevertheless,  seemed  rather  chilly 
and  unresponsive.  A  dignity  prevailed  which 
either  could  not  or  dared  not  give  way  to  any 
126 


An  Anti-Suffrage  Meeting 

decided  demonstration,  in  marked  contradis- 
tinction to  the  enthusiasm  which  characterized 
the  suffrage  meetings  he  had  witnessed. 

In  addition  to  the  bunting  and  the  mottoes, 
there  were  a  number  of  large  pictures,  done  in 
the  style  of  the  cartoonist.  One  of  these  showed 
a  colonial  dame  at  her  spinning-wheel, 
with  the  words  "An  American  Lady  of  Four 
Generations  Ago"  beneath  it;  beside  it  was  the 
picture  of  a  masculine-looking  woman,  in  a 
harem  skirt,  standing  on  a  box  at  a  street  cor- 
ner, addressing  other  women  similarly  attired; 
this  was  called  "The  American  Suffragette." 
Another  picture  showed  a  nurse  caring  for  the 
sick  and  dying  soldiers  on  one  side,  and  on  the 
other  a  suffragette  charging  the  police;  this 
picture  was  labeled  "Before  and  After 
Taking." 

The  meeting  opened  with  a  spirited  address 
by  the  president  of  the  association,  Mrs.  Brig- 
low-Jorliss,  who  was  welcomed  with  a  brief 
rustle  of  well-bred  applause,  led  by  Frank 
Earl. 

"Got  to  do  it,"  he  said,  in  answer  to  Carroll's 
reproachful  look.  "You'll  see;  even  Jack  will 
catch  on  before  the  end  of  the  meeting.  Al- 
127 


An  American  Suffragette 

ways  applaud  these  folks  when  they  begin; 
maybe  you  can't  when  they  quit." 

Mrs.  Briglow-Jorliss  told  of  the  enormous 
gains  recently  made  by  the  "  Antis"  among  the 
select  people  of  the  city,  and  passed  off  the 
suffrage  parade  as  merely  a  tatterdemalion  host 
of  the  riff-raff  of  the  city  led  by  a  few  no- 
toriety seekers. 

"You  see,  Miss  Holland,"  Frank  whispered, 
"what  a  good  thing  it  is  that  I  came  here;  I 
never  should  have  known  that  that  parade 
wasn't  one  of  the  finest  assemblages  of  women 
in  the  world  if  I  hadn't." 

Silvia  laughed  in  spite  of  herself,  and  the 
stout  lady  on  the  platform  went  on  piling  up 
the  indictment  against  her  sex,  and  showing 
how  demoralizing  the  vote  had  proved  to  wom- 
en; how  the  suffrage  sentiment  was  dying  out 
in  the  West;  how  the  "Antis"  were  organizing 
even  in  the  suffrage  States  to  lift  the  curse  from 
their  kind ;  how  much  purer  and  nobler  politics 
would  be  without  the  influence  of  woman,  and 
wound  up  with  a  glowing  peroration*on  behalf 
of  the  women  who  were  fighting  to  maintain 
the  sanctity  of  the  home  and  the  elevation  of 
the  children. 

Silvia  gave  an  impatient  ejaculation.  "How 
128 


An  Anti-Suffrage  Meeting 

can  you  take  it  so  quietly,  Miss  Renner?"  she 
asked.  "I  confess  it  always  stirs  me  up." 

"It  wouldn't  if  you  had  the  ballot,"  said  the 
smaller  woman.  "It's  just  amusing,  or  tire- 
some, according  to  how  well  it  is  done.  You 
women  are  the  worried  and  worrying  Marthas ; 
we  are  the  Marys,  who  have  chosen  the  better 
part  that  shall  not  be  taken  away;  we  know  it 
can't  be,  and  this  is  something  like  hearing  peo- 
ple laboriously  argue  that  the  world  is  flat  with 
the  sun  revolving  around  it." 

After  the  opening  speech  there  were  brief 
addresses  by  Dr.  David  Dearson  on  the  disas- 
trous results  to  motherhood  should  women  par- 
ticipate in  the  active  life  of  the  nation;  by  the 
Reverend  Jayson  Yerkes  on  the  Pauline  doc- 
trine of  the  subserviency  of  the  truly  feminine 
woman;  by  Mrs.  Workman  Werther  on  the 
decadence  of  feminine  charm  among  women 
aping  men's  interests  in  life,  and  Crawford 
Dorer,  a  labor  leader,  opposed  the  movement 
because  the  natural  timidity  of  woman  would, 
he  predicted,  set  back  all  hope  of  militant  prog- 
ress for  the  workers  of  the  world.  The  "Antis" 
listened  with  a  somewhat  strained  and  puzzled 
attention,  and  a  group  of  workingwomen,  out 
on  strike,  and  sitting  in  the  balcony,  gave  an 
129 


An  American  Suffragette 

angry  hiss,  which  was  instantly  suppressed. 
The  last  speaker,  Mr.  Reuben  Rice,  was  one 
of  those  wandering  scribes  who  travel  through 
the  West  and  write  up  suffrage  from  a  Pull- 
man-car window,  and  as  he  exposed  the  weak- 
nesses, the  failures  and  the  pitiful  spectacle 
that  voting  women  make  of  themselves,  he  gal- 
vanized the  audience  into  a  semblance  of  real 
life  and  interest. 

Dr.  Earl  found  the  speeches  entertaining  if 
not  enlightening,  and  after  the  second,  gave 
himself  up  to  the  silent  enjoyment  of  collating 
the  arguments  presented  in  juxtaposition.  No 
sooner  had  one  speaker  convinced  his  hearers 
that  women  would  precipitate  anarchy  by  their 
radicalism  than  the  next  proved  equally  con- 
clusively that  an  era  of  dilettanteism  and  milli- 
nery shop  legislation  would  be  the  inevitable 
result  of  woman  suffrage ;  no  sooner  were  they 
filled  with  the  horror  of  the  degradation  of 
politics  by  the  class  of  women  certain  to  par- 
ticipate in  it,  than  another  speaker  assured 
them  that  politics  was  already  so  vile  that  any 
woman  would  be  hopelessly  contaminated  who 
had  anything  to  do  with  the  gangrenous 
growth,  and  yet  another  showed  that  women 
wouldn't  vote  anyhow.  It  was  all  he  could  do 
130 


An  Anti-Suffrage  Meeting 

to  control  the  muscles  of  his  face  when  the 
Reverend  Mr.  Yerkes  told  them  in  one  sentence 
of  the  dissension  that  would  rend  families  and 
in  the  next  that  married  women  simply  voted 
as  their  husbands  dictated,  and  he  could  not 
repress  a  smile  when  the  doctor  and  the  pro- 
fessor made  it  clear  that  if  woman  is  to  repro- 
duce the  race  she  must  not  be  expected  to  do 
anything  else,  only  to  have  Mrs.  Werther  show 
how  woman  must  be  free  to  take  part  in  the 
ennobling  activities  of  the  world,  philanthropy, 
charity,  etc.,  if  she  is  to  "bring  to  motherhood 
that  crown  which  is  the  glory  of  the  race,"  and 
much  more  of  the  same  sort.  He  heard  the 
ancient  argument  about  bullets  and  ballots, 
and  in  the  same  breath  his  attention  was  called 
to  Semiramis  conquering  Assyria,  the  Ama- 
zons invading  Asia,  the  triumph  of  Sappho  in 
song,  Aspasia  in  the  salon,  Deborah  among  the 
Judges  of  Israel,  George  Eliot  in  literature, 
and  a  host  of  others  who  had  won  distinction. 

The  audience  was  told  that  it  was  entirely 
proper  to  agitate,  cajole,  coax,  beseech, 
threaten,  bully  and  browbeat  men  into  voting 
for  candidates  and  measures  desired  by  the 
women;  anything  that  stopped  short  of  black- 
mail and  personal  intimidation  bore  the  hall- 
131 


An  American  Suffragette 

mark  of  refined  femininity,  but  to  take  two 
minutes  to  accomplish  results  for  themselves 
by  depositing  a  ballot  on  election  day  meant 
everlasting  damnation  to  all  feminine  traits! 
And  Leonora  patted  her  pretty  little  hands, 
and  looked  up  to  Earl  for  approval,  feeling 
that  at  last  he  must  see  that  Silvia  and  her 
cohorts  were  routed  horse  and  foot. 

When  the  attack  upon  Western  women  was 
well  under  way,  and  Mr.  Rice,  a  dapper  little 
chap,  looking  like  a  freshman  from  high 
school,  was  rolling  out  his  arraignment  of  Den- 
ver women  in  particular  as  typical  of  the  neth- 
ermost depths  to  which  the  voting  female  may 
descend,  Carroll  Renner  wrote  a  few  lines  on 
a  bit  of  paper,  and  gave  it  to  one  of  the  ushers, 
and  a  few  minutes  later  she  had  the  satisfaction 
of  watching  the  portly  Mrs.  Briglow-Jorliss 
read  it.  When  Mr.  Rice  had  concluded  his 
diatribe,  the  lady  stated  in  dulcet  tones  that 
Mr.  Frank  Earl  was  said  to  be  in  the  audience, 
and  as  he  lived  in  Denver,  and  was  known  to 
litcve  strong  views  on  this  question,  there  was 
an  urgent  request  that  he  should  come  to  the 
platform,  that  they  might  know  from  one  who 
had  long  witnessed  with  regret  the  deteriora- 
ting effects  of  woman  suffrage  that  nothing 
132 


An  Anti-Suffrage  Meeting 

that  they  had  heard  was  in  any  way  exagger- 
ated. She  vouched  for  Earl  as  one  whom  she 
had  known  since  his  boyhood,  a  member  of  one 
of  the  most  highly  respected  families  in  New 
York,  and  who  had  never  failed  to  reply  when 
she  had  needed  statistics  from  the  field  of 
woman's  dethronement. 

There  was  a  bustle  and  stir  over  the  audi- 
ence, and  John  Earl  looked  a  good  deal  star- 
tled, while  Leonora  was  openly  delighted.  An 
excellent  speaker,  and  a  trained  debater,  the 
occasion  had  no  terrors  for  Frank  Earl.  In 
fact,  he  confessed  to  himself  as  he  made  his 
way  to  the  platform,  he  had  not  had  so  much 
fun  as  he  expected  to  enjoy  in  the  next  fifteen 
minutes  for  many  a  long  day.  He  was  intro- 
duced with  many  rather  florid  expressions,  and 
began  by  stating  his  position  calmly,  unmis- 
takably, as  opposed  to  the  extension  of  the 
franchise  to  women.  He  then  made  a  few  com- 
plimentary references  to  those  ladies  who  no- 
bly put  aside  their  own  devotion  to  the  home, 
the  sphere  they  adorned  so  admirably,  in  order 
to  save  their  misguided  suffrage  sisters  from 
the  evil  effects  of  their  mistaken  zeal. 

There  were  a  good  many  suffragists  and 
some  suffragettes  in  that  anti-suffrage  meeting, 
133 


An  American  Suffragette 

and  Frank  saw  that  the  chilly  audience  had  at 
last  thawed,  melted,  warmed  up  and  was  rap- 
idly approaching  the  point  where  it  might  rea- 
sonably be  expected  to  boil  over. 

"I  am  unalterably  against  the  extension  of 
the  franchise  to  women,"  he  repeated,  and  went 
on,  "but  my  reasons  for  this  opposition  are 
concrete  and  practical  rather  than  abstract  and 
theoretical,  and  are  based  upon  the  experience 
I  have  gained  from  my  residence  in  Colorado. 
I  am  also  opposed  to  it  because  it  is  all  too  evi- 
dent that  the  suffrage  should  be  restricted 
rather  than  extended.  The  ballot  should  be  the 
reward  of  intelligence,  education,  and  a  com- 
prehension of  the  great  political  problems  of 
the  nation." 

"Give  us  the  truth,"  some  one  at  the  left  of 
the  parquet  cried. 

"I  shall,"  he  said,  "and  that  necessitates  cor- 
recting a  few  impressions  which  seem  to  me  at 
variance  with  the  facts.  If  it  were  true  that 
women  would  not  vote,  or  would  vote  as  direct- 
ed by  the  male  members  of  their  families,  I 
should  not  so  much  deprecate  giving  them  the 
ballot;  but  neither  contention  is  true.  Women 
do  vote,  and  what  is  worse,  they  vote  in  steadily 
increasing  numbers.  Out  of  seventy  thousand 
134 


An  Anti-Suffrage  Meeting 

votes  cast  at  the  last  election  in  my  city  a  little 
less  than  half  of  them  were  cast  by  women,  and 
judging  from  the  results,  I  must  say  that  the 
men  of  their  families  had  very  little  influence 
with  them.  The  possession  of  the  franchise  has 
developed  the  secretive  instinct  among  women ; 
they  no  longer  confide  their  intentions  to  their 
doting  husbands;  they  listen  to  their  words  of 
wisdom  and  then — they  vote  the  secret  ballot 
as  they  please." 

There  was  a  wave  of  laughter  that  swelled 
into  a  gleeful  sort  of  shout  of  mirth,  but  with 
an  air  of  the  most  grieved  surprise  the  speaker 
turned  wonderingly  to  Mrs.  Briglow-Jorliss, 
who  still  beamed  upon  him,  though  she  was 
looking  worried. 

"But  surely,  Mr.  Earl,"  she  said,  "when  the 
disagreeable  duty  is  thrust  upon  them,  the 
conservative  women  do  what  they  can  to  pro- 
tect the  interests  of  the  State?" 

He  shook  his  head  sadly. 

"This  is  one  of  the  most  frightful  discoveries 
we  have  made  since  women  began  to  vote. 
When  Mr.  Dorer  speaks  of  the  innate  con- 
servatism of  women  he  shows  that  he  is  not 
conversant  with  the  woman  movement.  It  is 
true  that  there  are  a  few  intensely  partisan 
135 


An  American  Suffragette 

women,  who  can  be  held  by  party  ties,  but  the 
rank  and  file  observe  no  such  allegiance.  They 
read  and  study,  but  in  addition  they  go  to  the 
legislative  halls,  and  there  they  see  that  both 
parties  make  and  break  promises  with  equal 
facility,  and  what  is  the  result?" 

"Well,  what  is  it?"  cried  an  impatient  fem- 
inine voice. 

"I  hardly  know  how  to  break  it  to  you,"  he 
said,  "but  the  result  is  revolt,  revolt  all  along 
the  line.  Yes,  ladies;  women,  lovely,  refined, 
gentle,  educated  women  utterly  refuse  to  be 
dictated  to  by  political  leaders,  and  openly 
sneer  at  ward  bosses.  They  can't  be  kept  in 
line.  They  no  longer  sing  the  sweet  strains  of 
'The  land  of  the  free  and  the  home  of  the 
brave.'  On  the  contrary,  they  raise  the  battle 
cry,  'Let  independence  be  our  boast,'  and  in 
spite  of  the  passionate  pleas  of  their  natural 
leaders,  they  go  on  record  for  the  most  radical 
legislation.  Why,  I'm  told  that  nearly  every 
so-called  progressive  law  enacted  in  my  State 
has  been  passed  by  their  continued  efforts. 

"They  have  no  conception  of  the  ideal  of 

government  laid  down  by  Hamilton ;  they  will 

submit  to  neither  checks  nor  balances,  and 

would  subvert  the  whole  scheme  of  representa- 

136 


An  Anti-Suffrage  Meeting 

tive  government  and  replace  it  with  an  out-and- 
out  democracy.  In  accord  with  this  mistaken 
view  they  have  adopted  the  initiative  and  ref- 
erendum, carried  it  overwhelmingly,  three  to 
one,  in  every  county  in  the  State,  and  I  need 
not  tell  an  audience  of  intelligence  that  this 
is  the  most  insidious  form  of  attack  now  being 
made  upon  the  fundamental  principles  of  our 
government." 

By  this  time  Silvia  and  all  the  suffragists  in 
the  audience  were  applauding  wildly,  while 
Carroll  Renner  laughed  till  the  tears  ran  down 
her  cheeks,  and  once  more  Frank  turned  a  pa- 
tient and  puzzled  countenance  to  the  presiding 
officer. 

"I  do  not  understand  the  applause,  ladies," 
he  said  mildly,  with  a  gleam  in  his  eyes  that 
none  but  Carroll  understood.  "The  thing  I 
am  telling  you  is  frightful.  The  enfranchise- 
ment of  women  means  the  end  of  the  Republic 
as  it  now  is;  it  means  the  rejection  of  all  theo- 
ries that  are  found  wanting,  and  the  putting 
out  on  the  vast  uncharted  sea  of  experiment; 
it  means  interference  with  those  great  business 
enterprises  that  have  built  up,  I  had  nearly  said 
that  'make  and  preserve  us  a  nation' !  It  means 
a  reckless  disregard  for  property  rights  in  the 
137 


An  American  Suffragette 

sentimental  desire  to  protect  the  individual,  as 
if  a  nation  could  become  great  and  strong  by 
individual  effort  alone,  and  without  the  guiding 
and  sustaining  hands  of  statecraft  and  financial 
genius  gripping  the  rudder  of  the  ship  of  state. 
They  will  not  listen  to  the  voice  of  experience ; 
they  cannot  be  intimidated ;  they  cannot  be  de- 
ceived for  an  indefinite  number  of  years ;  if  the 
established  order  seems  to  them  unfair,  unjust 
or  illiberal,  they  have  little  respect  for  tradi- 
tion when  it's  results  they're  after." 

"But  if  the  anti-suffrage  movement  is  grow- 
ing as  we  have  been  told,  can't  the  anti-suffra- 
gists overcome  those  tendencies?"  asked  an  old 
lady  on  the  platform. 

Frank  restated  the  question  for  the  benefit 
of  the  audience,  and  then  answered  with  in- 
describable pathos,  "I  cannot  conceal  the  truth 
from  you;  improbable  as  it  seems,  when  once 
this  poison  becomes  virulent  in  the  body  politic 
it  spares  none,  and  the  very  women  who  have 
battled  most  nobly  against  this  corroding  inno- 
vation are  apt  to  succumb  to  its  insidious  in- 
fluence; even  the  anti-suffragist,  home-loving, 
God-fearing,  modest  and  retiring  as  is  her  na- 
ture, has  developed  a  talent  for  political  in- 
trigue that  has  led  to  the  downfall  of  more 
138 


An  Anti-Suffrage  Meeting 

than  one  of  the  best  laid  plans  of  mice  and 
men." 

He  tried  to  go  on,  but  the  audience  was  con- 
vulsed, not  so  much  by  what  he  said  as  by  his 
manner,  and  by  the  sudden  turning  of  the 
tables  after  the  long  tension  had  reached  the 
snapping  point.  Still  uncertain  whether  to 
regard  his  as  friend  or  foe,  Mrs.  Briglow-Jor- 
liss,  after  rapping  vainly  for  order,  was  obliged 
to  dismiss  the  meeting,  and  by  some  irony  of 
fate  the  orchestra  played  "Hail  Columbia," 
and  the  suffragettes  took  up  the  words  and 
sung  them  with  much  unction,  especially  the 
lines — 

"Let  independence  be  our  boast, 
Ever  mindful  what  it  cost." 


139 


CHAPTER   XIV 

FAITH  IS  THE  BASIS  OF  ALL  PROGRESS 

EARLY  in  June,  Dr.  Earl  received  a  letter 
which  puzzled  him  not  a  little.  It  was  com- 
plimentary in  the  extreme,  and  yet  something 
back  of  it  made  him  say,  "  'For  it  is  not  an 
open  enemy  that  hath  done  this/  "  The  letter 
asked  him  to  speak  on  "Mental  Therapeutics" 
before  a  meeting  of  one  of  the  great  medical 
societies  of  the  city  of  New  York;  stated  that 
there  would  be  no  other  speaker,  but  there 
would  be  an  open  discussion  after  his  address, 
and  hoped  he  would  find  time  to  comply  with 
the  request.  Once  he  started  to  write  his  ac- 
ceptance; twice  he  actually  wrote,  declining, 
and  then  tore  up  both  letters.  It  was  true  that 
he  was  crowded  for  time,  but  he  could  make 
time,  and  in  his  heart  he  knew  perfectly  well 
that  he  would  have  done  so  without  a  thought, 
but  for  the  unexpected  complications  which 
had  occurred  with  Alice  Bell.  Already  he  had 
140 


Faith  Is  the  Basis  of  All  Progress 

heard  one  or  two  thinly  veiled  sneers  at  the 
result  of  this  much-lauded  case.  He  had  met 
Towers  and  Hershell,  both  of  them  eminent 
in  the  profession,  but  the  day  before,  and  their 
greetings  had  been  singularly  cool;  once  or 
twice  at  the  club  they  both  frequented  Morris 
had  been  little  short  of  insulting,  but  his  well- 
known  infatuation  for  Silvia  Holland  would 
account  for  that.  A  reporter  from  one  of  the 
less  reputable  dailies  had  asked  for  an  inter- 
view, and  had  written  an  article  which  barely 
escaped  being  libelous.  There  were  not  want- 
ing those  in  the  profession  who  openly  de- 
nounced him  as  a  "fakir." 

The  longer  he  thought  about  it,  the  more  un- 
willing he  was  to  act  upon  his  own  judgment 
alone,  and  so  he  turned  to  the  one  unfailing 
counsellor  of  his  life,  his  sister  Hilda.  With 
him,  to  will  was  to  do,  so  within  an  hour  he  was 
in  his  sister's  drawing-room,  and  not  five  min- 
utes later  Silvia  Holland  entered  and  was 
warmly  greeted  by  Mrs.  Ramsey.  The  day 
was  dismal  and  the  rain  was  descending  in  a 
steady  downpour  that  gave  no  promise  of  ever 
ceasing;  it  was  late  afternoon,  and  Mrs.  Ram- 
sey said  cordially,  "Let  us  have  tea  in  my  sit- 
ting-room; nobody  else  will  come  such  a  day 
141 


An  American  Suffragette 

as  this,  and  it  will  be  so  much  more  cosy.  I 
distrust  from  his  air  of  supernatural  grav- 
ity that  my  brother  has  something  on  his 
mind " 

"Then  I  will  be  de  trop"  said  Miss  Holland. 
"I  will  amuse  myself  in  the  library  until  you 
are  at  liberty.  I  was  awfully  glad  to  get  your 
'phone  message  to  come  over,  for  it's  a  wretched 
day,  and  I  was  wondering  where  I  should  go 
for  tea  as  I  came  up  town  from  my  office. 
Have  your  conference  and  never  mind  about 
me." 

"Indeed,"  said  Jack  eagerly,  "if  you  would 
be  so  kind  as  to  give  me  your  opinion  also  on 
the  matter  I  have  called  to  consult  my  sister 
about,  you  would  confer  a  great  favor,"  and 
even  as  he  spoke  he  knew  it  was  for  her 
quick  comprehension  he  had  been  unconsciously 
wishing  all  the  time. 

She  laughed  and  assented  graciously,  and 
they  followed  Mrs.  Ramsey  to  her  own  charm- 
ing little  room,  as  dainty  and  distinctive  as  its 
owner.  Upon  the  tea-tray  there  were  cig- 
arettes, and  Dr.  Earl  rather  wondered  whether 
Silvia  would  accept,  but  she  shook  her  head. 
"No,"  she  said  lightly,  "I  emulate  men's  vir- 
tues, not  their  vices;  maybe  my  nerves  may 
142 


Faith  Is  the  Basis  of  All  Progress 

need  alternate  sedatives  and  stimulants  some 
day,  but  as  yet  I  hardly  know  that  I  have 
any." 

Hilda  lit  one  rather  languidly.  "My  doctor 
says  it  isn't  so  much  nerves  as  lack  of  nerve 
with  me;  I  don't  know  what  you  call  it,  but  I 
confess  I  find  the  smoke-wreaths  pleasant; 
you  won't  join  me  either,  Jack?  Well,  let  us 
have  the  story  in  all  its  native  simplicity  and 
be  sure  you  nothing  extenuate  nor  set  down 
aught  in  malice." 

"I  am  told,"  he  said,  "that  no  well-bred  New 
Yorker  makes  literary  allusions,  and  that  to 
quote  Shakespeare  is  to  relegate  oneself  to  his 
century;  however,  this  is  the  problem,"  and 
then  he  read  them  the  letter. 

Hilda  was  openly  pleased.  "Why  not?"  she 
said.  "It  seems  to  me  a  very  courteous  and 
appreciative  note,  and  I  should  think  you 
would  enjoy  speaking  before  that  kind  of  an 
audience,  all  of  them  picked  men,  trained  and 
scientific  and  able  to  take  in  shades  of  meaning 
and  distinctions  that  are  wasted  on  the  laity. 
Unless  you  are  keeping  something  back,  I 
should  say,  accept  by  all  means.  But  are  you?" 

He  paused.     "In  just  a  moment,  Hilda. 
How  does  it  strike  you,  Miss  Holland?" 
143 


An  American  Suffragette 

She  held  out  her  hand  for  the  note,  and  read 
and  then  reread  it,  and  her  forehead  contracted. 
"I  wonder,"  she  said  to  herself,  "whether  this 
is  what  Orrin  meant  when  he  said  the  profes- 
sion would  furnish  Dr.  Earl  enough  rope — I 
meant  to  ask  him  what  he  did  mean,  but  I  for- 
got it."  Aloud  she  said,  "Isn't  Dr.  Morris  one 
of  the  directors  of  this  society?  He's  a  fellow 
alumnus  of  yours;  it  doesn't  seem  as  if  he 
would  be  likely  to  show  you  an  affront,  does  it?" 

"That's  just  the  point,"  answered  Dr.  Earl. 
"Is  it  a  case  of  'mine  own  familiar  friend'?" 

His  sister  looked  at  him  quizzically.  "When 
it  comes  to  literary  allusion,  Jack,"  she  said, 
"New  York  might  permit  Shakespeare,  but  I 
assure  you  it  wouldn't  stand  for  the  psalmist. 
Do  you  really  think  it  is  a  plan  to  get  you  into 
some  false  position  or  to  embarrass  you  with 
criticisms  or  queries  not  made  in  good  faith?" 

"That  is  exactly  what  I  want  to  know,"  he 
said. 

"And  what  if  it  is?"  asked  Silvia. 

He  colored.  "You  mean  I  ought  to  be  will- 
ing to  bear  testimony  to  my  beliefs  whether 
they  meet  with  acceptance  or  not?" 

Hilda  blew  a  ring  of  smoke  ceilingwards. 
"That's  the  trouble  with  these  suffragettes," 
144 


Faith  Is  the  Basis  of  All  Progress 

she  said  reminiscently.  "They  never  question 
the  advisability  of  'casting  pearls  before 
swine.'  " 

Jack  laughed  and  Silvia  turned  on  her  re- 
proachfully. "Hilda!  That  isn't  fair;  haven't 
you  just  said  yourself  that  this  would  be  a 
picked  audience?  Suppose  a  little  clique  of 
them  have  arranged  the  meeting  with  the  in- 
tention of  heckling  the  speaker?  The  bulk  of 
them  will  be  there  in  good  faith,  anxious  to 
learn,  willing  to  listen  to  your  brother's  ac- 
count of  his  experiences,  and  profit  by  them. 
If  he  can't  gain  a  respectful  hearing  there, 
where  will  he  gain  it?" 

"Forgive  me  for  being  biblical  to-night," 
Hilda  answered.  "I  can't  seem  to  get  away 
from  the  suggestion ;  you  know  it  was  the  high 
priests  and  the  rulers  of  the  synagogue  that 
stirred  up  their  followers  to  cry,  'Crucify  Him, 
crucify  Him!'  And  times  have  changed  more 
than  people.  The  poor  will  hear  gladly  enough 
of  healing  that  is  to  be  had  without  money  and 
without  price,  and  operations  that  may  be 
avoided  by  simply  keeping  well,  but  my  experi- 
ence is  that  the  fetish  of  the  professional  man 
is  a  jealous  god,  given  to  heresy  hunting,  and 
bowing  down  and  worshiping  at  the  shrine  of 
145 


An  American  Suffragette 

'regularity.'  They  want  to  preserve  the  status 
quo  at  any  cost." 

"Yes,"  said  Silvia  bluntly,  "even  after  it  has 
long  been  lost.  They  are  like  people  who 
might  discover  an  ostrich  egg-shell  after  the 
bird  was  half  grown,  and  go  chasing  after  it, 
trying  to  put  it  back  inside  the  shell.  I  think 
it  is  Emerson  who  says  that  there  are  quantities 
of  people  who  are  always  trying  to  become  set- 
tled, whereas  our  only  salvation  consists  in 
being  constantly  unsettled.  I  think  the  Eng- 
lish women  are  infinitely  braver  and  finer  in 
their  attitude  on  the  suffrage  question  than  we 
are.  What  I  feel,  Dr.  Earl,  is  this:  we  have 
come  to  a  time  when  nothing  is  really  worth 
while  unless  it  is  worth  fighting  for.  There 
are  other  worth  while  things,  of  course,  for  the 
laboratory  man  or  woman,  but  for  those  of  us 
who  are  in  the  thick  of  the  fight,  who  want  to 
do  things  now,,  it  is  necessary  that  we  should  be 
willing  to  do  battle  for  our  beliefs." 

"But  is  that  the  way  to  win?"  asked  the  doc- 
tor. "We've  all  heard  about  catching  flies  with 
molasses,  to  use  a  homely  simile." 

"Yes,"  responded  Silvia;  "the  more  molasses 
the  more  flies.  No,  the  old  methods  are  gone 
or  are  going.  Do  you  suppose  anything  would 
146 


Faith  Is  the  Basis  of  All  Progress 

do  the  suffrage  cause  as  much  good  in  this 
country  as  clubbing  a  few  old  women  who  want 
respectfully  to  present  a  petition  to  the  other 
old  women  in  Congress?  A  few  years  ago  a 
petition  was  presented,  signed  by  a  million 
women,  and  a  jocose  member  rolled  it  down  the 
aisle  with  his  foot,  saying  it  might  as  well  be 
signed  by  mice!  But  just  let  them  try  the 
English  methods  and  every  State  in  the  Union 
would  enfranchise  its  women  just  as  soon  as 
they  could  get  a  popular  vote  on  it."  She 
stopped  short.  "Oh,  I  beg  your  pardon,  doctor, 
I  didn't  mean  to  give  you  a  suffrage  lecture." 
"You  are  not,"  he  said.  "At  least,  what  I 
understand  is  that  you  are  trying  to  make  me 
see  thai  the  spirit  of  the  age  is  the  militant 
spirit,  that  does  not  wait  to  have  its  own  pre- 
sented to  it,  but  takes  it  wherever  it  finds  it." 
She  nodded  and  he  went  on:  "I  think  that  is 
true,  but  with  this  difference  between  the  illus- 
tration you  cite  and  the  case  in  point.  You 
women  must  be  passionate  enthusiasts  to  win, 
because  the  thing  you  want  is  concrete  and 
imminent  and  personal.  I  have  no  intention 
of  setting  up  as  a  v ade  mecum,  founding  a  new 
cult,  proselyting  or  even  preaching  my  own 
doctrines ;  in  the  first  place  I  shall  change  them 
147 


An  American  Suffragette 

as  I  discover  better  ones,  or  when  they  fail  to 
bring  results,  and  in  the  second  I  shall  be  too 
busy  practicing  my  theories  to  find  time  to 
exploit  them." 

"There  you  are  wrong,"  said  his  sister. 
"When  a  man  like  Jenner  comes  along  that  is 
the  time  for  practicing,  but  when  smallpox  has 
been  rooted  out  and  tuberculosis  forgotten, 
men  will  still  read  what  Socrates  had  to  say  of 
immortality  and  the  sermon  on  the  mount. 
When  you  hear  people  belittle  the  written  and 
the  spoken  Word,  it  becomes  us  to  remember 
that  'In  the  beginning  the  Word  was  God,'  and 
all  that  we  know  of  past  civilizations  is  the 
word  they  have  left  behind,  painted  on  their 
stony  walls  or  burned  in  a  brick  to  say,  'After 
me  cometh  a  builder.  Tell  him  I  too  have 
known.' " 

"But,  my  dear  sister,"  Jack  answered,  "don't 
you  think  assuming  the  role  of  the  teacher  may 
be  just  a  trifle,  only  a  trifle,  presumptuous  on 
my  part?" 

"I  don't  quite  know  what  your  new  views 
are,"  she  answered. 

"They  are  not  new,"  he  said.  "In  fact  they 
are  most  of  them  of  such  hoary  antiquity  that 
they  are  lost  in  the  mists  that  brooded  over  the 
148 


Faith  Is  the  Basis  of  All  Progress 

face  of  the  deep.  It  is  only  the  application  that 
is  new.  Even  that  has  always  been  understood 
by  certain  great  souls.  Pythagoras  is  said  to 
have  taught  the  Greeks  to  believe  in  metem- 
psychosis for  the  purpose  of  making  them 
kinder  to  lesser  forms  of  life ;  like  many  beauty 
worshipers  they  were  frankly  inhuman,  and 
it  took  heroic  measures  to  create  even  a  glim- 
mering perception  of  the  unity  of  life  which  is 
the  basis  of  all  the  great  world  religions, 
whether  it  be  Buddha's  'Who  hurteth  another 
hurteth  himself,'  or  Christ's  commandment, 
'Love  one  another';  the  Yogi  looking  first  at 
the  prince  and  then  at  the  pauper  and  saying, 
'I  am  that,'  or  Father  Damien  going  into 
voluntary  exile  for  the  sake  of  the  souls  of 
the  wretched  lepers.  The  Prince  of  Peace 
preached  the  doctrine  of  spiritual  inspiration, 
and  the  King  of  Conquerors  said  'Imagination 
rules  the  world.'  Jesus  or  Napoleon — both 
knew  that  back  of  the  visible  man  himself  is 
the  thought  of  the  man,  which  controls  him, 
and  other  men  through  him,  if  it  possesses 
power  and  vitality  and  truth." 

"Then  it  is  a  kind  of  new  thought?"  asked 
Hilda. 

"Rather  a  renaissance  of  old  thought.  The 
149 


An  American  Suffragette 

modern  quest  of  the  Grail  is  not  for  the  crystal 
cup  that  held  the  holy  elements,  but  for  the 
divine  life  itself,  the  principle  that  inspires  men 
to  action.  The  philosopher  of  our  day  is  not 
a  hermit,  theorizing  about  vague  abstractions, 
but  vitally  alive  to  the  problems  that  confront 
this  day  and  generation,  and  modern  psychol- 
ogy is  changing  all  the  methods  of  the  great 
processes  of  existence.  Education,  medicine, 
law,  are  all  in  process  of  transformation. 
Grandsons  of  the  men  who  denounced  Mesmer 
as  a  charletan  thronged  the  clinics  of  Charcot." 

"Yes,"  said  Silvia,  "and  within  the  next  dec- 
ade Miinsterberg  will  have  compelled  a  com- 
plete remodeling  of  our  forms  of  legal  pro- 
cedure. No  attorney  worth  his  salt  would 
undertake  to  ignore  the  apparatus  devised  by 
the  psychologist,  and  the  time  is  nearly  gone  by 
when,  as  he  says,  courts  will  prefer  to  listen  to 
the  'science'  of  the  handwriting  experts,  rather 
than  permit  the  examination  of  a  witness  by 
methods  in  accord  with  the  exact  work  of  the 
psychologist." 

"That  is  true,"  assented  Jack,  "and  not  the 

least  gratifying  part  of  the  whole  matter  is  that 

it  isn't  the  unimportant  who  are  the  ones  to 

speak  respectfully  of  the  changing  ideal;  in 

1.50 


Faith  Is  the  Basis  of  All  Progress 

fact,  the  smaller  a  man's  calibre  the  more  sure 
you  can  be  that  he  will  cling  to  the  established 
order.  It  is  only  very  great  men  who  have  the 
courage  of  their  intuitions  long  enough  to 
prove  them.  Miinsterberg  can  afford  to  say 
what  he  thinks.  Now  if  I  go  to  this  meeting 
and  tell  these  men  that  'there  are  cases  where  a 
fact  cannot  come  at  all  unless  a  preliminary 
faith  exists  in  its  coming,'  what  do  you  think 
they  will  say?" 

Hilda  smiled.  "Most  of  them  will  suspect 
you  of  quoting  'Science  and  Health.'  If  they 
accuse  you  of  it,  read  them  the  rest  of  the 
paragraph." 

"What  is  it?"  asked  Silvia  eagerly. 

"I  can  find  it  in  a  moment,"  said  Hilda,  go- 
ing to  the  bookshelves,  and  taking  down  a 
modest  olive-colored  volume.  "Here  it  is. 
'And  where  faith  in  a  fact  can  help  create  the 
fact,  that  would  be  an  insane  logic  which  should 
say  that  faith  running  ahead  of  scientific  evi- 
dence is  the  lowest  kind  of  immorality  into 
which  a  thinking  being  can  fall.  Yet  such  is 
the  logic  by  which  our  scientific  absolutists  pre- 
tend to  regulate  our  lives.'  That  is  from  the 
late  Professor  James,  who  is  said  to  have  been 
the  profoundest  thinker  this  country  has  ever 
151 


An  American  Suffragette 

produced,  and  he  has  said  much  more  equally 
startling  to  those  little  minds  that,  like  full  bot- 
tles, have  no  room  for  more." 

Dr.  Earl  threw  back  his  head  and  laughed; 
his  quandary  was  over,  his  course  settled.  He 
turned  to  Silvia  with  a  genial  smile.  "Score 
one  more  victory  for  the  Feminists,"  he  said. 
"I  wonder  if  there  ever  has  been  a  time,  any- 
where on  earth,  where  women  were  actually 
and  aggressively  noncombatants.  The  Spartan 
woman  handing  over  her  husband's  shield  is 
typical.  Whenever  and  wherever  there  has 
been  a  cause  worth  fighting  for,  worth  dying 
for — always  and  forever  we  can  see  the  figure 
of  the  woman,  shield  on  arm  and  javlin  in 
hand,  standing  at  the  door  of  the  slothful  war- 
rior's tent,  calling  him  to  action.  Sometimes 
the  eternal  feminine  leads  on,  but  very  fre- 
quently, I  regret  to  say,  it  has  to  get  back  and 
drive,  and  sometimes  if  it  did  not  kneel  and 
push  I  fear  the  wheels  of  progress  would  not 
revolve  at  all;  that  we  do  go  on,  slowly  and 
uncertainly,  it  is  true,  but  that  we  go  on  at 
all,  is  due  to  the  woman  soul  that  will  not  let 
us  waste  our  years  in  the  wilderness  when  the 
land  of  promise  is  so  near  at  hand.  Ladies, 
I  go!" 

152 


Faith  Is  the  Basis  of  All  Progress 

He  rose  as  if  to  make  good  his  words,  but 
Hilda  entered  a  peremptory  negative,  and  it 
ended  by  his  staying  to  dinner  and  spending  a 
long  and  utterly  delightful  evening,  which  be- 
came in  a  sense  the  beginning  of  what  he  felt 
was  a  new  epoch  in  his  life.  This  was  the  un- 
derstanding, the  fellowship,  the  bon  camarad- 
erie that  gives  existence  its  zest  and  permits 
one  to  dream  of  life  eternal  without  a  horror  of 
impending  weariness  and  boredom. 


158 


CHAPTER   XV 

AN  EVIL  PROPHECY  BEGINS  TO  BEAR  FRUIT 

LEONORA  and  Mrs.  Kimball  accompanied 
Df .  Earl  to  the  meeting  of  the  medical  society, 
and  if  he  had  some  doubts  whether  or  not  she 
would  be  able  to  follow  his  discourse  perfectly, 
he  had  none  whatever  as  to  his  own  pride  and 
pleasure  in  her  dainty  loveliness.  She  was 
gowned  in  white,  and  the  season's  styles  were 
particularly  becoming  to  her  graceful  and  well- 
rounded  figure.  Her  radiant  face  with  its  sen- 
sitive coloring  resembled  the  delicate  glow  of 
one  of  those  rare  Sevres  vases  of  the  Empire 
Period. 

She  appreciated  the  compliment  of  the  invi- 
tation, as  people  always  appreciate  the  com- 
pliment of  being  invited  to  distinguished  gath- 
erings where  the  subjects  of  discussion  are 
likely  to  be  much  beyond  their  range  of  knowl- 
edge or  understanding. 

There  was  a  large  attendance,  for  while 
154 


An  Evil  Prophecy  Begins  to  Bear  Fruit 

many  members  of  the  profession  had  come  from 
idle  curiosity,  most  of  those  present  were  inter- 
ested in  the  views  of  any  man  of  standing  who 
might  throw  new  light  upon  the  successful  ap- 
plication of  either  medical  or  surgical  remedies. 

Whatever  criticisms  may  be  passed  upon  in- 
dividual practitioners,  or  however  many  Bour- 
bons may  exist  in  the  fraternity,  yet  it  must 
be  apparent  to  the  student  of  such  matters  that 
nowhere  in  the  world  does  as  large  a  percentage 
of  the  medical  or  surgical  profession  adopt  new 
and  improved  methods  of  treatment  of  the 
maimed  and  the  ill  as  in  the  United  States. 
And  nowhere  in  the  world  are  such  new  and 
improved  methods  applied  with  anything  like 
the  aptness  or  skill  as  by  American  doctors  of 
medicine  or  surgery. 

The  old  school,  the  newer  school,  the  newest 
school  of  legally  recognized  practitioners  were 
there  in  force,  as  well  as  numbers  of  those  who 
were  effecting  remarkable  cures  without  any 
spcial  sanction  of  law  for  their  methods. 

Modestly  and  earnestly,  Dr.  Earl  discussed 
the  subject  that  had  been  assigned  him,  ampli- 
fying as  much  as  his  time  would  permit,  and 
occasionally  citing  authorities  bound  to  com- 
155 


An  American  Suffragette 

mand  respectful  attention  from  scientific 
minds. 

He  was  aware  that  he  had  the  sympathy  of 
most  of  his  audience,  and  he  was  just  as  fully 
conscious  of  the  hostility  of  Drs.  Morris, 
Tower,  Hershell,  Bainbridge  and  two  or  three 
more  of  those  who  believed  with  something  ap- 
proaching fanaticism  that  all  physicians  and 
surgeons  must  adhere  strictly  to  what  they  de- 
nominated "standard  methods." 

While  Leonora  could  not  comprehend  the 
larger  significance  of  his  discourse,  it  gratified 
her  pride  and  pleased  her  vanity  that  her  fiance 
was  a  man  who  could  obtain  such  a  hearing 
from  the  medical  profession.  The  discussion 
that  followed  the  address  was  animated  and  in- 
telligent, and  if  the  malcontents  had  intended 
any  discourtesy  to  Dr.  Earl  their  plans  went 
awry. 

Dr.  Earl  found  himself  plunged  deeper  and 
deeper  every  day  in  the  seemingly  innumerable 
duties  that  crowded  upon  him.  Summer  came 
with  tropical  heat,  but  feeling  that  he  had  al- 
ready enjoyed  a  long  vacation,  he  made  no 
plans,  save  to  take  his  week-ends  out  of  town, 
and  prepared  to  keep  office  hours  all  summer. 

Early  in  July,  Leonora  and  her  mother  went 
156 


An  Evil  Prophecy  Begins  to  Bear  Fruit 

to  Bar  Harbor  and  the  Ramseys  to  Newport. 
Frank  had  gone  West  in  May.  He  would  have 
missed  them  had  he  possessed  a  free  moment, 
but  the  first  of  August  found  him  as  busy  as 
ever,  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  the  city  was  de- 
serted by  the  fashionable  world.  Sickness  has 
fashions  of  its  own,  and  the  fame  he  had 
achieved  as  "the  surgeon  who  cures  without 
operating,"  brought  him  not  a  few  calls  from 
those  who  had  nothing  to  commend  them  save 
their  suffering  and  their  faith.  Every  doctor 
worthy  the  name  has  a  set  of  books  kept  only 
by  his  recording  angel,  and  Earl's  invisible 
guardian  made  many  entries  that  summer,  and 
there  were  times  when  even  the  insistence  of 
Leonora  could  not  make  him  feel  willing  to 
leave  those  who  seemed  so  wholly  dependent 
upon  his  presence  for  their  physical  welfare. 

Now  and  then,  in  spite  of  his  all-absorbing 
work,  there  came  to  his  sensitive  consciousness 
a  feeling  of  foreboding  and  dread  that  he  could 
not  explain,  save  by  some  subtle  law  of  sug- 
gestion, as  he  recalled  half  in  mirth  and  half 
in  seriousness  the  dark  prophecies  of  the  astrol- 
ogist  at  the  suffrage  ball.  He  had  suspected 
his  brother  Frank,  and  when  he  learned  that  the 
seeress  was  Miss  Renner,  that  suspicion  had 
157 


An  American  Suffragette 

been  confirmed;  Frank  might  have  given  her 
the  date  of  Leonora's  birthday,  but  he  had  noth- 
ing to  do  with  the  warning  she  had  given  him 
that  something  would  happen  within  the  next 
twenty-four  hours  which  would  have  a  bearing 
on  his  whole  career.  Within  two  hours  he  had 
treated  little  Alice  Bell,  and  out  of  that  event 
had  grown  his  more  intimate  acquaintance  with 
Silvia,  and  the  marked  hostility  of  Dr.  Morris. 
The  child  was  doing  as  well  as  could  be  ex- 
pected, but  he  was  greatly  disturbed  over  her 
condition,  and  was  building  up  her  general 
health  in  the  hope  of  overcoming  the  disease. 

He  had  asked  Miss  Renner  one  or  two  ques- 
tions, but  she  had  evaded  him,  and  while  he 
had  thought  of  calling  on  her  and  asking  for 
the  promised  horoscope,  which  she  did  not  send, 
the  idea  seemed  absurd,  and  he  had  no  time  to 
carry  it  out. 

On  the  fourth  of  August  he  received  a  sum- 
mons to  come  to  Magnolia,  Massachusetts,  to 
attend  a  former  patient  who  was  spending  the 
summer  there,  and  he  left  New  York,  intending 
to  remain  a  week. 

His  movements  had  become  a  matter  of  in- 
terest to  the  ubiquitous  newspaper  reporter, 
and  as  the  dog-days  in  New  York  were  not 
158 


An  Evil  Prophecy  Begins  to  Bear  Fruit 

prolific  in  startling  items,  the  fact  of  his  being 
sent  for  to  attend  a  prominent  New  York  man 
at  Magnolia  was  seized  upon  and  made  into  a 
fairly  readable  first  page  news  story. 

He  arranged  for  the  care  of  his  patients, 
saw  the  Bells  and  told  them  of  his  intended 
absence,  and  spent  some  time  talking  with  the 
frail  little  child  who  had  become  greatly  at- 
tached to  him.  As  he  rose  to  go,  he  turned  to 
the  couch  once  more.  "What  shall  I  send  you 
from  Boston,  little  Miss  Alice?"  he  said  kindly, 
and  the  girl  replied  in  true  child  fashion, 
"Candy."  He  shook  his  head.  "You  know  I 
don't  approve  of  much  candy  for  small  girls; 
but  you  shall  have  something  better,"  he  said, 
"you  may  be  sure  I  won't  forget,"  and  with 
another  good-by  he  was  gone.  He  took  the 
midnight  train  for  Boston,  and  his  patient's 
motor  car  was  waiting  for  him  when  he  arrived 
there. 

Perhaps  it  was  the  excitement  of  thinking 
what  the  "something  better"  could  be  that  kept 
Alice  Bell  awake  that  night;  whatever  it  was, 
when  Silvia  Holland  saw  her  the  next  morning 
her  heart  sank.  She  had  a  feeling  that  she  was 
in  some  way  responsible  for  the  child  also,  and 
that  she  was  still  Dr.  Earl's  assistant.  She 
159 


An  American  Suffragette 

watched  her  while  she  talked  to  Mrs.  Bell,  and 
suggested,  in  a  tentative  way,  that  Mrs.  Bell 
should  go  to  some  quiet  country  place  for  a 
month,  but  the  woman  shook  her  head. 

"I  cannot  leave  the  city,  now,"  she  said.  "I 
have  a  great  quantity  of  sewing  that  must  be 
done  for  Miss  Lanier's  wedding  in  September." 

"Couldn't  you  take  it  along?"  asked  Silvia. 

"No,"  she  said  quietly,  but  decidedly.  "Some 
of  the  things  she  wants  fitted,  and  I  have  said 
I  would  be  here  any  time  she  wanted  to  run 
into  town.  Besides,  there  are  other  reasons 
why  I  cannot  go  away  now."  She  controlled 
herself  with  an  effort.  "I  can  never  tell  you, 
Miss  Holland,  how  thankful  I  am  for  the  work 
you  have  brought  my  way.  You  can't  under- 
stand, no  woman  who  has  never  been  anxious 
to  know  how  she  was  going  to  get  the  rent  can 
understand  what  a  blessing  it  is  to  be  independ- 
ent !  You  are  doing  great  things  for  all  women, 
Miss  Holland,  and  not  forgetting  individual 
women  as  some  people  would,  but  do  try  to 
make  girls  understand  that  they  can  never  be 
free  so  long  as  they  are  dependent  on  somebody 
else  for  their  bread  and  butter." 

Silvia  flushed.  "You're  not  fretting  because 
of  the  paltry  little  sum  I  advanced  for  your 
160 


An  Evil  Prophecy  Begins  to  Bear  Fruit 

rent,  are  you?"  she  said.  "I  thought  we  were 
friends,  and  such  things  should  not  be  spoken 
of  between  friends." 

The  woman  turned  to  her  with  a  face  in 
which  gratitude  and  some  great  sorrow  were 
contending  emotions,  and  caught  her  hands  and 
held  them  tight. 

"No,"  she  said,  "I  don't  mind  being  under 
obligations  to  you;  I'm  almost  glad  to  be,  for 
the  sake  of  knowing  such  a  woman.  You  can 
do  a  kindness  without  making  it  a  burden; 
there  are  people  who  pay  a  debt  as  if  they  were 
doing  you  a  favor.  The  only  thing  I  mind  is 
that  I  am  not  more  worthy  of  all  you  have  done 
for  me." 

Silvia  put  her  hands  on  the  other  woman's 
shoulders.  "Don't  talk  to  me  of  unworthiness," 
she  said.  "You  are  a  brave  woman  and  a  de- 
voted mother;  it  is  one  of  the  crimes  of  civiliza- 
tion that  you  should  lack  for  any  creature  com- 
forts, and  you  shall  not  any  more.  You  shall 
earn  what  you  need  yourself,  and  this  fall  I 
intend  to  start  a  class  of  girls  in  domestic  econ- 
omy, and  you  shall  teach  them  how  to  make 
these  pretty  things  you  fashion  so  exquisitely." 

An  indescribable  look  of  pain  and  rebellion 
passed  over  Mrs.  Bell's  face,  and  she  turned 
161 


An  American  Suffragette 

away  from  Silvia,  with  a  quick  gesture  of 
renunciation. 

"In  the  meantime,"  Silvia  went  on,  feeling 
that  the  time  had  not  come  to  seek  any  further 
confidence,  "I  am  going  to  borrow  Alice.  I 
want  to  take  her  up  to  Nutwood  for  a  week  or 
two,  and  as  I'm  going  this  noon,  suppose  you 
gather  her  things  together,  and  I'll  take  her 
right  along." 

The  little  girl  gave  a  cry  of  joy,  and  then 
her  face  dropped.  "But,  mamma,"  she  said, 
"will  I  miss  my  present  from  Dr.  Earl?" 

Her  mother  smiled  and  explained  that  the 
doctor  had  promised  to  send  Allie  "something 
better  than  candy"  from  Boston,  where  he  had 
gone  the  night  before.  "I  will  forward  it," 
she  said;  "you  can  trust  mother  for  that." 

"He  has  been  very  good  to  you,  hasn't  he?" 
said  Silvia  absently,  thinking  of  him  once  more 
as  she  had  seen  him  first,  as  he  bent  over  the 
child,  the  sleeves  rolled  back  from  his  powerful 
white  arms  while  he  bathed  the  matted  locks 
and  set  the  broken  leg. 

"He  has  that,"  said  the  woman  laconically. 

"I'm  glad  to  have  Allie  go  with  you,  for  she 

would  miss  him;  he  said  he  wouldn't  be  back 

for  a  week.    Now  be  a  good  girl,  Allie,  and 

162 


An  Evil  Prophecy  Begins  to  Bear  Fruit 

do  just  as  Miss  Holland  tells  you,  and  you  will 
write  mother  a  little  letter  every  day,  and 
mother  will  write  to  you."  She  flung  her  arms 
about  the  child  in  a  sudden  passion  of  emotion, 
but  the  eyes  that  looked  into  Silvia's  as  she 
took  her  hand  were  dry  and  wretched. 

"I  wish  you  could  tell  me  all  about  it,"  Silvia 
said  impulsively. 

"I  shall,  soon,"  she  answered;  "unless  Fate 
turns  kind  for  once,  I  shall  tell  you  all,  soon, 
very  soon." 


163 


CHAPTER    XVI 

THE  MYSTERIOUS  MURDER  OF  EMMA  BELL 

THE  crowd  going  home  from  the  resorts  and 
roof  gardens  August  9th  was  startled  by  the 
wild  cries  of  the  newsboys:  "Extra!  Extra! 
All  about  the  mysterious  murder!" 

Murders  are  not  so  rare  in  New  York  as  to 
cause  any  genuine  sensation  among  its  people 
when  one  is  announced  in  the  public  press,  but 
mystery  has  ever  been  attractive  to  the  human 
race,  and  the  details  of  the  present  case  as  con- 
tained in  the  columns  of  the  papers  were  so 
involved  in  conjecture  as  to  arouse  the  interest 
of  every  reader.  The  only  facts  that  were  clear 
were  that  Mrs.  Emma  Bell  had  been  found 
dead  in  the  sitting-room  of  her  apartment  on 
East  56th  Street  with  a  box  of  candied  fruit 
on  the  table  near  her,  which  had  just  been 
opened,  and  which,  according  to  the  postmark 
stamped  on  the  paper  enclosing  the  box,  had 
been  mailed  to  her  from  Boston.  Written  on 
164 


The  Mysterious  Murder  of  Emma  Bell 

thin  paper  that  was  so  pasted  as  to  cover  the 
entire  top  of  the  box  was  the  inscription,  "With 
best  wishes  to  you  and  Alice.  J.  E." 

A  weird  description  of  the  lifelike  appear- 
ance of  the  woman  when  found,  seated  in  her 
chair,  with  eyes  staring  and  pupils  dilated,  was 
given  in  the  best  reportorial  style.  The  coroner 
had  taken  possession  of  everything  and  had  or- 
dered the  apartment  sealed  until  an  inquest 
could  be  held.  Whether  or  not  the  candied 
fruit  had  anything  to  do  with  the  death,  and 
if  so  who  could  have  sent  it,  were  all  matters 
of  speculation  which  the  various  writers  had 
covered  in  from  one  to  four  columns,  according 
to  their  respective  imaginative  qualities  and 
newspaper  instinct,  but  none  of  them  gave  the 
slightest  intimation  as  to  the  suspected  person, 
if  murder  really  had  been  committed. 

More  or  less  accurate  likenesses  of  Mrs.  Bell 
were  given  with  all  the  events  of  her  life  that 
seemed  spectacular,  the  most  prominent  of 
which  was  that  her  neighbors  had  long  specu- 
lated as  to  her  source  of  livelihood,  since  her 
husband's  death  some  four  years  previously, 
and  with  characteristic  charity  such  speculation 
led  to  hints  along  salacious  trails  and  the  dark 
recesses  of  public  suspicion.  *The  events  of  the 
165 


An  American  Suffragette 

injury  to  her  little  girl,  and  her  treatment  by 
Dr.  Earl,  and  the  devotion  of  the  volunteer 
nurse,  lacked  nothing  in  their  interesting  nar- 
ration in  connection  with  the  supposed  murder 
mystery,  and  assisted  very  materially  in  en- 
hancing that  mystery  through  the  glamour  of 
prominent  personages  who  were  so  well  in  the 
foreground  of  the  story. 

The  coroner's  jury  sat  upon  the  case  as  coro- 
ners' juries  have  been  sitting  upon  similar  cases 
ever  since  English  jurisprudence  advanced  to 
the  stage  of  not  executing  people  on  suspicion. 
There  was  the  same  dank,  solemn  atmosphere 
of  the  morgue,  the  same  density  of  intellect  and 
understanding,  the  same  owl-like  gaze  of  stu- 
pidity that  passed  muster  for  wisdom,  the  same 
perfervid  desire  to  get  a  certificate  on  the  pub- 
lic treasury  without  undue  mental  or  physical 
effort,  the  same  ambition  to  give  a  duly  im- 
pressive but  harmless  verdict,  that  must  have 
characterized  the  first  empaneled  jury  of  this 
nature.  Never  by  any  possibility  could  these 
original  qualities  have  deteriorated,  and  it 
would  require  a  wild  stretch  of  the  imagination 
to  note  any  traces  of  improvement. 

The  reading  of  the  verdict  of  a  coroner's 
jury  has  never  been  known  to  disqualify  any 
166 


The  Mysterious  Murder  of  Emma  Bell 

person  from  serving  on  a  trial  jury  in  a  mur- 
der case  by  unduly  influencing  the  opinion,  or 
arousing  the  passions  of  such  involuntary  can- 
didate for  the  jury  box.  No  jails  have  been 
stormed  or  revolutions  started  by  the  verdict 
of  an  American  coroner's  jury,  and  New  York" 
was  not  destined  to  have  its  sensibilities  too 
harshly  jarred  by  a  sensational  verdict  in  this 
case. 

After  solemnly  sitting  for  hours,  the  jury 
found  that  "Said  Emma  Bell  came  to  her 
death  from  the  effects  of  hydrocyanic  acid  ad- 
ministered by  some  person  to  the  said  jurors 
unknown,  and  whether  said  hydrocyanic  acid 
was  administered  with  felonious  intent  the  said 
jurors  cannot  at  this  time  ascertain." 

The  facts  established  by  the  jury  were,  that 
the  woman  was  dead;  that  hydrocyanic  acid 
had  killed  her;  that  the  cause  of  death  was  so 
evident  that  it  was  only  necessary  to  examine 
the  contents  of  the  stomach;  that  apparently 
none  of  the  candied  fruit  had  been  disturbed, 
as  the  box  was  even  full  and  the  top  layer  as 
smooth  as  when  first  packed;  that  a  chemical 
analysis  proved  that  no  poison  of  any  kind  was 
in  any  of  the  candied  fruit  in  the  box ;  that  no 
vial  could  be  found  on  or  near  the  woman 
167 


An  American  Suffragette 

after  death,  and  that  a  thorough  search  of 
the  apartment  failed  to  disclose  any  of  this 
or  any  other  kind  of  poison;  that  the  woman 
was  quite  alone  in  the  apartment  when  death 
took  place  and  was  only  discovered  by  the  jani- 
tress  at  ten  o'clock  at  night,  at  which  time  she 
entered  the  apartment,  having  been  invited  to 
sleep  there  during  the  absence  of  the  child  in 
the  country,  whither  she  had  gone  a  few  days 
previous  to  this  for  a  week's  stay;  that  Mrs. 
Bell  had  been  doing  her  own  work  for  several 
months  and  taking  in  fine  sewing. 

But  ambitious  newspaper  reporters  bent 
themselves  to  this  new  task,  as  is  their  custom 
in  all  matters  of  public  concern,  i.  e.,  to  outrival 
the  most  noted  expert  in  the  line  of  that  par- 
ticular phase  of  public  endeavor  uppermost  at 
the  time.  Theories  were  advanced  in  the  daily 
papers  that  made  Sherlock  Holmes  seem  like 
a  novice  in  detective  work  and  Lucretia  Borgia 
a  mere  infant  in  the  skillful  administration  of 
poisons.  The  regular  detectives,  both  public 
and  private,  were  aroused  by  the  mystery  that 
shrouded  the  case.  It  remained,  however,  for 
the  ubiquitous  reporter,  to  whom  society  really 
owes  a  debt  along  every  line  of  worthy  public 
endeavor  impossible  either  to  estimate  or  dis- 
168 


The  Mysterious  Murder  of  Emma  Bell 

charge,  to  discover  that  the  handwriting  on  the 
box  was  that  of  Dr.  John  Earl,  and  that  he  had 
been  in  the  habit,  for  months,  of  paying  almost 
daily  visits  to  the  Bell  home;  that  he  was  at 
Magnolia  Beach,  but  a  short  ride  from  Boston, 
at  the  time  the  package  was  mailed  there ;  that 
ostensibly  he  had  visited  the  Bell  home  to  at- 
tend the  little  girl  who  was  injured  by  the 
automobile,  but  that  the  mother  was  undoubt- 
edly much  interested  in  him;  that  there  were 
many  rumors  among  surgeons  that  his  opera- 
tion on  the  leg  of  the  child  had  produced  tuber- 
culosis; that  the  district  attorney  had  received 
anonymous  letters  to  the  effect  that  Earl  had 
deliberately  attempted  to  poison  both  mother 
and  daughter,  to  be  rid  of  an  unpleasant  liaison 
on  the  one  hand  and  the  evidence  of  his  lack 
of  skill  on  the  other;  that  the  child  had  gone 
to  the  country  after  he  left  the  city  and  he  still 
supposed  her  with  her  mother,  hence  the  saving 
of  the  child's  life;  that  the  box  of  candied  fruit 
was  only  a  blind,  and  that  some  other  package 
must  have  arrived  containing  the  poison  in  an- 
other form,  possibly  in  the  same  wrapping 
paper  with  the  fruit;  that  no  possible  motive 
could  be  discovered  for  the  poisoning  by  any 
169 


An  American  Suffragette 

other  person  and  no  clue  could  be  found  lead- 
ing to  a  suspicion  of  any  one  else. 

With  five  hundred  thousand  visitors  con- 
stantly within  the  gates  of  their  city;  with  a 
shifting  population  of  nearly  a  million  more; 
with  permanent  residents  absorbed  in  the  most 
strenuous  existence  known  on  the  American 
Continent;  with  sensation  in  high  life  of  such 
frequent  occurrence  as  to  benumb  any  effort  to 
form  a  discriminating  opinion — the  people  of 
New  York  (visitors,  temporary  denizens,  those 
of  fixed  habitation)  welcomed  these  ready- 
made  conclusions  of  the  daily  press  and  blindly 
adopted  them  as  their  own. 

Individual  character  counts  for  less  in  the 
metropolis  of  the  United  States  than  it  does 
anywhere  else  in  the  nation.  There  are  several 
reasons  for  this,  but  the  principal  ones  are  a 
lack  of  time  on  the  part  of  the  permanent  resi- 
dents to  inform  themselves  on  such  matters  and 
a  lack  of  interest  in  the  subject  on  the  part  of 
the  remainder  of  the  population.  The  result 
is,  that  when  charges  are  made,  with  any  de- 
gree of  sanction  from  the  constituted  authori- 
ties, against  ordinary  citizens  of  hitherto  blame- 
less lives,  the  great  majority  of  the  people  ac- 
170 


The  Mysterious  Murder  of  Emma  Bell 

cept  such  charges  as  well  founded  until  they 
are  effectively  disproved. 

So  it  was  in  this  case.  Just  as  soon  as  the 
incriminating  facts  seriously  involved  Dr.  John 
Earl  it  was  taken  for  granted  that  he  was 
guilty,  and  such  presumption  was  certain  to 
grip  the  public  mind  until  his  innocence  could 
be  duly  established,  if  such  result  were  at  all 
possible. 

This  was  also  the  golden  opportunity  for  the 
Bourbon  members  of  his  own  profession  to 
assail  his  theories  and,  secretly  and  openly,  cer- 
tain of  them  charged  that  the  result  in  Dr. 
Earl's  case  was  but  the  natural  one  where 
"standard  methods"  of  practice  were  set  aside 
for  the,  as  yet,  "unscientific  paths  of  suggestive 
therapeutics,"  as  these  reactionary  medical  men 
denominated  Earl's  system,  for  he  had  cured 
through  suggestive  methods  a  score  of  patients 
who  had  been  condemned  to  the  operating  table 
by  other  surgeons,  and  as  a  result  he  had 
aroused  the  resentment  of  such  surgeons  in 
particular  and  the  condemnation  in  general  of 
all  those  who  believed  in  the  supreme  curative 
power  of  the  knife. 

Those  in  other  walks  of  life,  who,  from  con- 
viction or  selfishness,  were  opposed  to  disturb- 
171 


An  American  Suffragette 

ing  present  conditions,  and  who  appreciated 
and  feared  the  interdependence  of  the  whole 
progressive  movement,  were  also  easily  con- 
vinced that,  properly  enough,  he  was  in  the  toils 
of  the  law. 

It  was  not  long  until  his  friends  and  defend- 
ers began  to  realize  that  a  secret  sentiment  was 
being  created  against  him  which  had  for  its 
purpose  the  discrediting  of  his  mental  stability, 
as  well  as  his  medical  methods,  and  that  they 
would  be  compelled  to  combat  not  only  men- 
acing facts  and  conditions,  but  also  the  still 
more  powerful  influences  of  centuries  of  preju- 
dice against  men  of  his  type,  who  had  dared  to 
get  too  far  ahead  of  the  general  parade. 

Psychologically,  some  interesting  impres- 
sions were  made  upon  observant  minds.  Many 
of  our  national  hypocrisies  were  emphasized, 
and  these  occurrences  revealed  certain  incon- 
sistencies of  public  pretension  and  action  in 
other  fields  closely  correlated  to  this  one,  and  it 
became  evident  that  improvement  in  theory  and 
practice,  in  matters  of  this  sort,  was  impossible 
so  long  as  more  fundamental  abuses  were  not 
only  permitted  but  sanctioned  in  a  most  ag- 
gressively affirmative  manner. 

These  observing  people  were  reminded  that 
172 


The  Mysterious  Murder  of  Emma 

in  this  Christian  nation  a  cross  of  considerable 
dimensions  is  generally  ready  for  instant  use 
in  immolating  the  person  who  is  rash  enough 
to  interfere  too  strenuously  or  persistently  with 
the  operations  of  our  morally  depraved  and 
generally  rum-soaked  political  bosses,  who 
have  boldly  usurped  the  functions  of  govern- 
ment and  whose  aims  and  purposes  are  widely 
at  variance  with  all  of  the  teachings  of  the 
lowly  Nazarene;  that,  much  as  we  pride  our- 
selves upon  our  philosophical  advancement, 
there  is  usually  a  cup  of  hemlock  in  reserve  for 
a  master  spirit  that  attempts  too  far  to  out- 
distance the  crowd;  that,  fond  as  we  are  of 
orating  and  writing  about  the  dark  days  of  bar- 
barism, we  continually  applaud  the  barbarian 
methods  of  those  who  appropriate  the  prop- 
erty and  liberties  of  their  fellow  men  to  increase 
their  own  wealth  and  power;  that,  while  there 
is  no  longer  much  of  a  disposition  to  consider 
the  earth  flat,  there  is  a  marked  tendency  to 
regard  most  every  other  mysterious  thing  as 
of  that  character. 

Dr.  John  Earl  had  friends  who  understood 
the  complex  and  extensive  nature  of  these  sen- 
timents, and,  whatever  might  be  their  opinion 
concerning  his  guilt  or  innocence  of  the  specific 
173 


An  American  Suffragette 

charge  under  discussion,  they  greatly  feared 
the  graver  charge  which  emanated  from  the 
chaotic  darkness  of  superstition,  ignorance, 
prejudice  and  jealousy  and  the  location  of 
which  could  be  determined  only  by  occasional 
and  angry  flashes  of  venom. 

While  these  things  were  occurring,  Dr.  Earl 
had  come  to  New  York  and  had  gone  directly 
to  the  district  attorney  and  notified  him  that,  if 
needed,  he  could  be  found  at  his  house  on  East 
53rd  Street,  but  he  assured  that  official  that  he 
knew  nothing  of  the  affair  whatever. 

This  was  treated  as  bravado  by  those  who 
believed  in  his  guilt  and  as  vindication  by  those 
who  asserted  his  innocence. 

His  brother  Frank  hastened  from  a  summer 
resort  in  the  fastnesses  of  the  Rockies  and  his 
sister  and  brother-in-law  returned  to  town  from 
Newport. 

One  day,  Silvia  Holland  appeared  at  the 
coroner's  office  and  asked  to  see  the  box  in 
which  the  candied  fruit  had  arrived.  She  ex- 
amined it  critically  for  several  minutes,  and 
then  asked  for  the  wrapper  containing  the  ad- 
dress and  postage  stamps.  There  were  three 
ten-cent  and  two  fifteen-cent  stamps  on  the 
paper,  although  it  was  apparent  that  half  that 
174 


The  Mysterious  Murder  of  Emma  Bell 

amount  in  postage  would  have  carried  the 
package.  She  compared  the  handwriting  with 
samples  of  Dr.  Earl's,  and  it  was  only  too  evi- 
dent that  both  address  and  message  were  writ- 
ten by  him. 

When  she  returned  to  her  office  she  found 
Miss  Renner  waiting  for  her  in  response  to  a 
telephone  message.  The  two  women  had  seen 
much  of  each  other  after  their  meeting  at  the 
League  House  and  a  deep  regard  had  sprung 
up  between  them.  For  the  time  being,  Miss 
Renner  was  doing  special  work  on  one  of  the 
New  York  papers,  and  lending  her  voice  to 
the  suffrage  cause  between  assignments.  They 
exchanged  greetings,  and  then  the  little  West- 
erner said  quietly,  "You  wanted  me?" 

Miss  Holland  looked  at  her  long  and  search- 
ingly.  "Yes,  I  both  want  and  need  you,  my 
dear.  Your  paper  has  been  rather  vindictive 
in  its  pursuit  of  evidence  against  Dr.  Earl. 
I  want  you  to  go  to  the  district  attorney  and 
ask  him  personally  to  examine  the  inside  of  the 
lid  of  the  box  which  contained  the  fruit,  also 
the  scalloped  paper  that  covered  the  fruit.  If 
he  does  so,  he  will  find  that  a  green  gage,  an 
apricot  or  a  plum,  which  was  seedless,  of  course, 
rested  on  top  of  the  paper,  and  was  crushed 
175 


An  American  Suffragette 

against  the  lid  of  the  box.  The  stain  is  quite 
distinct  on  both  paper  and  cover,  and  shows 
that  there  was  only  one  such  piece  of  fruit 
placed  there.  Of  course,  it  contained  the 
poison,  and  was  placed  on  top,  because  it  would 
naturally  be  eaten  first." 

Carroll  Renner  looked  at  her  in  amazement. 

"If  I  do  that  he  will  order  the  immediate  ar- 
rest of  Dr.  Earl;  it  will  put  him  in  jail  and 
possibly  lead  to  his  conviction.  Is  that  what 
you  desire  ?"  She  looked  up  at  the  taller  woman 
searchingly. 

"Surely  I  do— if  he  is  guilty,"  Miss  Holland 
replied,  without  changing  her  expression. 
"There  is  no  doubt  that  it  will  cause  his  imme- 
diate arrest,"  she  added,  "but  even  that  is  pref- 
erable to  this  suspense  with  everybody  suspect- 
ing him  and  no  opportunity  to  defend  himself." 

She  turned  away,  and  Carroll  slipped  her 
arm  about  her  waist.  "Dear  Silvia,  I'll  go — 
on  one  condition." 

"And  that  is?"  came  in  a  rather  muffled 
voice. 

"That  you  will  defend  him  yourself!"  said 

Miss    Renner.      Miss    Holland    turned    and 

caught  her  in  her  arms.    "I  can't  do  that,"  she 

said.  "I  couldn't,  anyhow,  without  being  asked, 

176 


The  Mysterious  Murder  of  Emma  Bell 

and  besides,  he  will  need  the  most  skillful  crim- 
inal lawyer  in  New  York  to  defend  him.  I 
should  make  a  sorry  mess  of  it." 

Carroll  drew  her  down  on  a  settee  and  held 
her  hands  firmly.  "You  might  just  as  well  be 
a  man,  if  you  are  going  to  talk  like  that — al- 
ways ready  to  let  women  go  ahead  until  some- 
thing really  worth  while  comes  along,  and  then 
saying  'only  a  man  can  do  big,  difficult  things.' 
After  all  you've  said,  are  you  going  to  hesitate 
when  it  comes  to  crossing  professional  swords 
with  a  man?  Come  now,  promise  me;  if  I  go 
to  the  district  attorney,  you  will  defend  him." 

"But  I  have  not  been  employed,  or  even 
asked  to  defend  him,"  she  insisted.  "You  must 
see  how  unprofessional  it  would  be,  Carroll." 

"Professional!  that's  what  the  doctors  say 
when  they  refuse  to  save  your  life  because  they 
don't  want  to  be  discourteous  to  a  fellow  prac- 
titioner," answered  Carroll.  "Well,  if  the  life 
of  the  man  I  loved  was  at  stake  I  wouldn't  wait 
for  somebody  to  come  and  hire  me  to  defend 
him!" 

"Carroll!"  cried  Silvia. 

"Silvia!"  she  retorted.  "Will  your  highness 
deign  to  accept  employment  if  it  is  offered  you 
by  his  family?" 

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An  American  Suffragette 
'Oh,  Carroll,  I  can't  let  you  drum  up  busi- 


"You  should  be  shaken,  Silvia,"  her  friend 
answered.  "Of  course  everybody  in  the  coun- 
try knows  that  you  live  in  daily  fear  of  the 
poorhouse,  and  keep  an  advertising  bureau 
busy  trying  to  find  you  employment!  How- 
ever, I  suspected  you  would  make  these  silly 
objections,  so  I  told  Frank  Earl  yesterday  that 
he  ought  to  move  heaven  and  earth  to  get  you 
to  defend  his  brother.  He  nearly  fell  on  my 
neck,  and  he  is  now  giving  me  absent  treat- 
ment or  holding  a  thought  that  I  may  succeed 
in  making  you  see  that  you  could  do  more  for 
the  doctor  than  any  other  New  York  lawyer." 

"That  isn't  true,  Carroll,"  she  said.  "I  wish 
it  were,  but  it  isn't,  and  I  haven't  been  able  to 
think  of  any  one  that  I  want  to  see  take  up  his 
defense." 

"Naturally,  because  you  know  you  ought  to 
do  it  yourself.  Now  listen  to  me."  Miss  Ren- 
ner  put  her  hands  on  Silvia's  shoulders.  "We 
haven't  known  each  other  long,  but  it  doesn't 
follow  that  we  don't  know  each  other  well.  If 
John  Earl  were  my  brother  I  should  give  you 
no  peace  until  you  promised  to  defend  him,  not 
alone  because  you  have  the  requisite  skill  as 
178 


The  Mysterious  Murder  of  Emma  Bell 

an  attorney,  but  because  you  would  give  this 
case  the  devotion,  the  insight,  that  are  not  to 
be  bought  with  money.  Now  you  know  my 
terms;  shall  I  go  to  the  district  attorney?" 

Silvia  kissed  her  impulsively.  "Yes,  dear; 
go — go  at  once!"  Her  eyes  filled  and  her  ex- 
quisite voice  quivered  with  the  strain  of  the 
emotion  she  could  no  longer  conceal.  "Oh, 
Carroll,  I'm  glad  to  have  you  now;  come  back 
to  me  afterward  and  tell  me  all  about  it!" 


179 


CHAPTER   XVII 

THE  ARREST  OF  DR.  JOHN  EARL 

EARLY  the  next  morning  Dr.  John  Earl  was 
arrested  for  the  murder  of  Emma  Bell  and  was 
remanded  by  the  magistrate  to  The  Tombs 
without  bail  to  await  the  action  of  the  grand 
jury,  which  was  soon  to  convene.  Both  he  and 
his  family  had  foreseen  the  event,  and  he  had 
made  the  necessary  arrangements  for  the  con- 
duct of  his  business.  Humiliating  as  his  arrest 
was,  they  all  bore  it  with  Spartan  courage,  and 
prepared  to  ransack  the  earth,  if  need  be,  to 
establish  his  innocence. 

Leonora  Kimball  and  her  mother  returned 
from  Bar  Harbor  to  find  their  city  friends 
almost  unanimously  arrayed  against  Dr.  Earl, 
and  they  were  not  themselves  in  the  best  humor 
with  the  tide  of  ill  fortune  that  had  swept  them 
into  these  muddy  currents.  They  went  imme- 
diately to  The  Tombs,  and  in  the  interview  that 
followed  Dr.  Earl  insisted  that  Leonora  should 
180 


The  Arrest  of  Dr.  John  Earl 

consider  herself  released  from  her  engagement 
so  long  as  the  least  taint  was  attached  to  his 
name  in  connection  with  this  charge.  She  pro- 
tested that  this  was  the  hour  of  his  need,  and 
she  could  not  think  of  such  a  thing,  but  he 
caught  the  tone  of  doubt  in  her  voice,  and  the 
lack  of  genuine  sympathy  in  her  manner. 
There  passed  rapidly  through  his  mind  the 
thought  that  the  electric  chair  might  be  just 
ahead  of  him;  a  long  imprisonment  might  be 
his  fate;  he  might  lose  the  affection  of  friends 
and  the  respect  of  strangers,  but  if  in  this  hour 
of  bitter  ordeal,  guilty  or  innocent,  whichever 
she  might  believe,  his  affianced  wife  did  not 
show  supreme  faith  and  devotion,  he  was  indeed 
a  beggar  in  the  realm  of  love.  Carroll's  omi- 
nous words  about  the  malign  stars  that  gov- 
erned her  fate  recurred  to  his  mind,  and  he 
thought  of  his  contest  with  himself,  and  his 
decision  when,  defying  the  possibility  of  sep- 
aration, inharmony  or  divorce,  he  elected  to 
keep  his  plighted  troth  whatever  his  post-nup- 
tial fate  might  be. 

But  in  the  recesses  of  his  prison  he  had 
yearned  for  love,  for  the  divine,  illuminating 
rays  that  had  lighted  the  path  of  many  a  mar- 
tyr to  the  stake ;  of  many  a  hero  to  the  cannon's 
181 


An  American  Suffragette 

mouth;  of  not  a  few  convicts  to  the  gallows; 
of  many  a  sublime  philosopher  to  the  dungeon 
or  the  ax — and  all  his  misfortunes  seemed  but 
fleecy  down  compared  to  the  weight  which  this 
sense  of  isolation  and  aloofness  from  the  ten- 
derness of  the  world  brought  to  him.  He 
looked  at  her  fair  young  face,  clouded  and 
troubled  now  with  doubts  and  annoyance,  and 
with  a  sinking  heart  he  realized  that  her  per- 
sonal vexation  loomed  as  large  upon  the  hori- 
zon of  her  mind  as  the  shame  and  danger  that 
had  overtaken  him. 

"For  the  present,  dear,  you  are  absolved 
from  any  obligation  to  me,"  he  said  very 
gravely.  "When  I  am  released  I  shall,  of 
course,  give  you  the  opportunity  to  reconsider 
if  you  choose  to  do  so,  but  in  the  meantime  you 
are  entirely  free ;  it  must  be  so,  dearest." 

She  made  no  reply,  but  lifted  her  face  to  his 
for  their  farewell  kiss,  and  her  mother  was  not 
able  to  stifle  her  sigh  of  relief  until  they  had 
passed  beyond  the  prison  walls.  As  they  left, 
Frank  entered  the  room,  and  the  glance  he  cast 
after  the  departing  form  of  the  elder  lady  was 
not  exactly  amiable,  but  he  kept  his  peace. 

"It  is  time,  Jack,  that  you  were  thinking  of 
somebody  to  take  charge  of  your  case.  You 
182 


The  Arrest  of  Dr.  John  Earl 

know  I'm  not  familiar  with  criminal  law,  or  the 
New  York  practice;  I'll  do  my  best,  but  you 
must  have  a  skilled  lawyer  in  command." 

"I  have  already  given  the  matter  deep 
thought,  but  I  have  not  made  up  my  mind. 
There's  Littlefield,  but  hiring  him  or  any  other 
noted  criminal  lawyer  is  equivalent  to  plead- 
ing guilty,"  answered  Jack.  "What  do  you 
suggest?" 

"I'm  not  in  a  position  to  make  suggestions 
myself  that  are  really  valuable,"  Frank  re- 
plied, "and  of  the  hundreds  that  have  been 
made  there  has  been  but  one  that  really  ap- 
pealed to  me.  That  came  from  my  Colorado 
friend — Miss  Renner;  but  this  is  a  matter 
where  you  must  be  the  sole  judge,  and  I  want 
you  to  make  your  own  selection,  regardless  of 
any  other  person's  ideas." 

"Miss  Renner  is  a  very  keen  woman,"  Jack 
said,  a  gleam  of  curiosity  in  his  manner.  "I 
should  like  to  hear  her  proposition;  it  is  sure 
to  be  original,  anyhow." 

Frank  answered  rather  hesitatingly.  "At 
first,  I  was  enthusiastic  about  it,  but  I  fear  you 
will  not  approve  of  trusting  your  life  to  a 
woman,  and  I  don't  urge  it  in  any  way;  Miss 
Renner  wants  us  to  employ  Silvia  Holland." 
183 


An  American  Suffragette 

"Miss  Holland  defend  me?  Will  she — 
would  she  be  willing  to  do  it?"  Jack  asked,  in 
startled  tones. 

"Carroll  Renner  says  she  will,"  Frank  an- 
swered, "and  she  is  curiously  correct  in  her 
judgments  of  people,  and  they  have  been 
pretty  close  this  last  summer." 

Earl  gave  a  sigh  of  relief.  "Then  by  all 
means  employ  her  at  once,"  he  said.  "I  not 
trust  my  life  to  a  woman?  Dear  Frank,  when 
is  there  ever  a  time  when  man  does  not  trust 
his  fate  to  woman?  The  infant  owes  his  exist- 
ence to  a  woman ;  the  boy  would  make  sad  prog- 
ress in  the  world  were  it  not  for  the  woman. 
The  young  man  would  drop  back  to  barbarism 
but  for  her,  and  where  would  you  and  I  be  but 
for  that  dear,  sweet  sister  of  ours?  Simply  be- 
cause the  Twentieth  Century  woman  is  break- 
ing away  from  the  old,  destructive  life  of  the 
parasite  and  endeavoring  to  fulfill  her  destiny 
on  earth,  is  no  reason  for  believing  that  she 
does  not  still  possess  all  the  noble  qualities  that 
have  characterized  her  since  the  world  began. 
Not  only  have  I  no  prejudices  against,  but  a 
decided  partiality  for  a  woman  defender,"  and 
so  the  matter  was  settled. 

Silvia  went  to  consult  with  Earl  every  day 
184 


The  Arrest  of  Dr.  John  Earl 

that  she  was  in  the  city,  and  strongly  advised 
against  any  attempt  to  secure  bail,  as  sure  to 
open  anew  the  charges  and  innuendoes  which 
were  already  but  dimly  remembered  by  the 
New  York  public.  She  took  personal  charge 
of  every  phase  of  the  case,  and  although  Frank 
was  associated  with  her  he  asked  few  questions 
and  she  volunteered  but  little  information.  A 
week  later  she  spent  several  days  in  Boston  and 
stopped  at  Providence  on  her  way  back,  but 
aside  from  telling  his  family  where  she  had 
been  she  gave  no  intimation  either  of  her  pur- 
poses or  the  results  of  her  trip,  and  cautioned 
every  one  to  give  nothing  to  the  press. 

"What  did  you  do  with  the  box  of  candied 
fruit  you  bought  at  Thompson's  candy  store 
when  you  were  in  Boston?"  she  demanded  of 
Dr.  Earl  at  her  first  interview  after  her  return. 

For  a  moment  he  looked  dazed.  "Box  of 
candied  fruit — I  didn't  buy  any — oh,  yes ;  wait 
a  minute.  While  at  Magnolia,  I  wished  to  pay 
a  visit  to  some  old  friends  who  live  in  East 
Boston;  they  have  a  youngster  in  the  family, 
and  I  bought  the  candied  fruit  for  her  at  the 
same  time  I  bought  the  pecans  which  I  sent  to 
Alice;  but  do  you  know,  a  curious  thing  hap- 
pened to  that  package  of  candied  fruit.  I  put 
185 


An  American  Suffragette 

it  on  the  seat  beside  me  while  crossing  the  ferry, 
and  then  took  up  a  magazine  article  I  was  much 
interested  in,  and  when  I  rose  to  leave  the  boat 
the  package  was  gone.  I  hadn't  been  conscious 
that  any  one  was  near  enough  to  take  it,  but 
there  was  a  crowd  on  the  boat,  and  my  package 
disappeared;  naturally,  I  didn't  mention  it  to 
my  friends." 

The  look  she  bent  upon  him  was  full  of  per- 
plexity. "Of  course  it  can't  be  traced,"  she 
said  to  herself.  "Did  the  box  have  the  name 
of  the  store,  or  any  name  of  a  manufacturer  or 
dealer  upon  it?  Try  and  remember,"  she  said. 

"Really,  I  cannot  say;  I  didn't  notice,  ex- 
cept that  the  clerk  wrapped  it  in  plain  white 
paper,"  he  replied. 

"Were  you  in  Providence  on  this  trip, 
or  have  you  been  there  recently?"  she  con- 
tinued. 

"Not  in  four  years,"  he  answered  and  she 
gave  an  involuntary  sigh  of  relief. 

"Have  you  expressed  any  annoyance  to  your 
medical  friends  over  the  development  of  tuber- 
culosis in  the  knee  of  little  Alice  Bell,  or  have 
you  stated  that  the  case  baffled  you?"  she  asked 
with  considerable  concern. 

"Yes,  I  have  said  to  at  least  two  surgeons 
186 


The  Arrest  of  Dr.  John  Earl 

that  I  was  annoyed  at  what  I  believe  to  be  the 
recurrence  of  an  old  condition,  but  never  that 
I  was  baffled.  It  is  perfectly  simple." 

"How  I  wish  I  could  find  that  letter,"  she 
said,  more  to  herself  than  to  him.  The  post- 
office  department  has  ransacked  the  country  for 
it,  but  it  seems  to  have  disappeared  as  com- 
pletely as  did  your  package  on  the  boat.  I  do 
wish  I  could  clear  up  two  or  three  things  to 
my  own  satisfaction,  but  you  can't  help  me, 
and  there  is  no  need  of  annoying  you  with 
them."  She  looked  about  the  small  room  set 
aside  for  the  consultation  of  prisoners  with 
their  counsel,  but  gained  no  inspiration  from 
the  bare  walls,  and  rose  to  go,  extending  her 
hand  as  she  did  so. 

"You  do  believe  in  my  innocence?"  he  asked. 

She  gave  no  direct  answer  in  words,  but  as 
her  eyes  met  his  he  knew  that  he  was  no  longer 
alone  in  his  struggles,  and  whatever  her  belief 
in  the  merits  of  his  case,  her  faith  in  him  was 
supreme. 

"It  is  not  a  question  of  what  I  believe,"  she 
said  at  last,  "but  of  what  the  State  can  prove 
on  the  one  hand,  and  what  we  shall  be  able  to 
show  on  the  other." 

"You  are  worried,"  he  said  quickly. 
187 


An  American  Suffragette 

"Yes,"  she  said,  "I  am;  your  life  may  be  at 
stake,  and  if  I  fail  to  clear  you  every  one  in  the 
country  will  say  that  I  should  never  have  taken 
this  case,  and  they  will  be  right.  Even  now, 
Dr.  Earl,  are  you  certain  it  would  not  be  better 
to  employ  counsel  eminent  in  this  branch  of  the 
profession?  I  shall  be  very  glad  to  serve  in 
second  place." 

"This  is  no  time  for  flattery  or  false  senti- 
ment, and  I  shall  attempt  neither,"  he  said; 
"as  you  know,  I  prefer  thorough  methods  in  all 
professions,  and  those  methods  require  rather 
more  of  the  psychological  than  the  usual  prac- 
titioner employs.  I  think  we  are  quite  agreed 
in  that.  For  that  and  other  ample  reasons  I 
prefer  to  leave  my  case  just  where  it  is." 

The  look  that  the  blue  eyes  flashed  up  to  the 
brown  ones  was  pleased  and  proud,  and  some- 
thing that  she  saw  there  sent  a  quick  flush  to 
her  cheek,  and  though  her  heart  was  heavy  her 
step  was  light  as  she  left  the  gloomy  building. 

Her  car  was  waiting  at  the  door,  and  calmly 
seated  therein  was  Carroll  Renner.  Silvia 
greeted  her  eagerly.  "Of  all  persons  on  earth 
you  are  the  one  I  was  most  wishing  to  see,"  she 
said.  "How  did  you  happen  to  come  here?" 

"I  got  your  telepathy,  Silvia,  dear,"  she  an- 
188 


The  Arrest  of  Dr.  John  Earl 

swered,  with  a  squeeze  of  the  hand,  "when  on 
mischief  bent  about  three  blocks  from  here,  and 
decided  to  come  by  this  cheerful  edifice  on  the 
chance  that  you  might  be  here.  I  saw  the  car, 
introduced  myself  to  your  chauffeur  and 
climbed  in.  I  must  say,"  she  added,  "that  you 
were  an  unconscionable  time.  Now,  what  can 
I  do  for  you?" 

"Let's  go  and  have  luncheon  somewhere," 
answered  Silvia,  "and  I'll  tell  you  all  about  it." 

"No,"  said  the  newspaper  woman,  "I  have 
to  interview  a  Mrs.  Somebody  or  other  who 
has  just  come  to  town  to  teach  us  how  to  con- 
nect our  trolleys  with  psychic  wires,  or  our  sub- 
liminal minds  with  ethereal  vibrations.  She's 
stopping  at  the  Buckingham,  and  if  you  want 
to  take  me  out  there  I'll  be  glad  of  the  lift,  for 
I'm  short  on  time,  and  we  can  talk  on  the  way." 

"Surely,  I'll  take  you  gladly,"  Silvia  an- 
swered, giving  the  directions  to  the  chauffeur, 
"and  since  I've  wasted  so  much  of  your  after- 
noon, I'll  send  back  for  you,  and  have  you 
taken  to  the  office  if  you're  going  there,  or  to 
your  own  hotel,  unless  you'll  come  and  dine 
with  me ;  I'm  alone  to-night." 

"Thank  you,"  Miss  Renner  answered;  "I 
would  be  glad  to  get  back  home,  for  I've  a 
189 


An  American  Suffragette 

wretched  headache;  not  that  I'm  particularly 
comfortable  there,  for  it's  been  abominably 
warm  the  last  few  days." 

Silvia  gave  a  sigh  of  relief .  "Has  it?  Well, 
that  makes  it  easier  for  me  to  ask  a  favor  of 
you.  But  first  tell  me,  Carroll,  are  you  timid — 
nervous?" 

"Do  you  mean  am  I  given  to  'seein'  things 
at  night'?"  Carroll  asked.  "I  don't  know  how 
it  will  be  after  I  have  my  seance  with  Mrs. 
Whoever-it-is  I'm  going  to  see,  but  when  I'm 
reasonably  abstemious  I'm  not  given  to  in- 
growing nerves.  What  do  you  want  me  to  do?" 

"I  want  you  to  go  and  live  in  what  was  Mrs. 
Bell's  home.  I  had  paid  the  rent  for  her  up 
to  the  end  of  October,  and  after  her  death  I 
took  charge  of  the  place.  Of  course,  I  couldn't 
send  Alice  back  there,  but  I  went  and  got  her 
clothes  and  toys  and  I've  been  there  a  number 
of  times.  I  had  a  new  lock  put  on,  and  have 
taken  a  maid  there  and  kept  it  in  order,  so  all 
you'll  have  to  do  will  be  to  send  up  your  trunk." 

"Certainly  I'll  go,"  Carroll  answered  so- 
berly, "but  what  do  you  expect  to  gain  by  it? 
Of  course  you  have  a  motive." 

"Yes,"  answered  the  other  woman,  "I  have, 
but  it  isn't  the  sort  of  thing  one  can  speak  of, 
190 


The  Arrest  of  Dr.  John  Earl 

except  in  the  closest  confidence.  I  haven't  men- 
tioned it  even  to  Frank  Earl,  whose  interest 
in  this  case  is  at  least  as  great  as  mine,  and  you 
mustn't.  I  haven't  been  practicing  law  so  very 
long,  but  I've  heard  that  all  lawyers,  who  are 
really  worth  while,  are  superstitious  about 
talking  over  a  case  before  it  goes  to  trial.  They 
don't  tell  their  clients  more  than  a  bare  outline, 
and  I  believe  it  is  true,  for  surely  I've  found 
myself  more  fanciful  than  I  ever  was  before. 
The  day  before  Mrs.  Bell  was  found  dead  in 
her  room  she  wrote  to  Alice ;  it  was  a  very  short 
letter,  and  she  excused  herself  by  saying  that 
she  was  very  tired,  having  written  me  a  long 
letter.  Naturally,  Alice  showed  me  the  letter, 
and  I  remarked  at  the  time  that  it  was  strange 
mine  hadn't  come  by  the  same  mail.  Then 
after  the  tragedy  it  slipped  my  mind  for  a  day 
or  so,  and  when  I  made  inquiries  it  had  not  been 
received,  or  if  it  had,  the  servants  said  it  was 
forwarded  to  me  here.  I  made  more  inquiries, 
but  nothing  could  be  found  in  my  office,  though 
there  was  a  bunch  of  mail  from  Nutwood.  The 
longer  I  thought  of  it  the  more  anxious  I  be- 
came to  find  that  letter,  and  when  I  was  em- 
ployed in  this  case  it  seemed  to  me  absolutely 
imperative  that  I  should  do  so.  I  have  seen 
191 


An  American  Suffragette 

all  the  postal  authorities  here  who  could  have 
any  knowledge  of  the  letter,  or  its  possible  dis- 
position, and  have  written  to  Washington,  but 
all  in  vain.  I  am  sure  it  would  clear  up  sev- 
eral matters  that  are  troubling  me  greatly." 

"Couldn't  the  letter  have  been  returned  to 
Mrs.  Bell's  apartment,  through  some  error  in 
the  address?  She  would  not  have  mailed  an 
important  letter  without  the  return  address," 
said  Carroll  practically. 

"That  was  my  idea  exactly,  so  when  it  didn't 
come  I  looked  for  it  there;  several  letters  ad- 
dressed to  her  had  been  delivered,  but  there 
was  no  sign  of  this  one.  Now,  I  can't  tell  why, 
but  I  feel  as  if  I  want  somebody  in  that  house. 
Was  there  ever  anything  more  utterly  unrea- 
sonable than  that  ?  I  wouldn't  dare  tell  any  one 
but  you;  I  can't  explain  it,  but  neither  can  I 
rid  myself  of  the  feeling,  and  I  was  going  to 
seek  you,  to  ask  if  you  will  undertake  this  for 
me.  All  I  want  is  that  you  shall  put  in  what- 
ever time  you  spend  in  your  own  apartment 
there.  Nothing  may  come  of  it,  but  you  have 
no  idea  what  a  relief  it  will  be  to  me  if  you 
will  not  be  too  much  inconvenienced,  and  you 
have  no  dread  of  the  rather  morbid  asso- 
ciations." 

192 


The  Arrest  of  Dr.  John  Earl 

"I'll  do  it,"  Carroll  answered.  "There  are 
too  many  other  people  in  the  building  for  me 
to  be  afraid  of  anything  alive,  and  as  for  the 
dead — well,  I  shouldn't  be  afraid  of  her  either. 
I  can't  tell  you  why,  but  I  believe  this  is  a 
good  move."  She  gave  a  little  shiver.  "I  hope 
the  new  lock  is  a  strong  one,  Silvia;  I  should 
hate  to  have  the  murderer  come  back  to  the 
scene  of  his  crime." 


193 


CHAPTER   XVIII 

DE.  EARL  IS  INDICTED  FOR  MURDER 

THE  grand  jury  returned  an  indictment 
against  Dr.  John  Earl  for  the  murder  of  Mrs. 
Emma  Bell.  There  could  be  but  one  grade  of 
homicide  in  this  kind  of  a  case,  and  he  was 
accordingly  charged  with  murder  in  the  first 
degree  and  his  trial  was  set  for  Tuesday  of  the 
following  week. 

Frank  came  to  see  him  early  Saturday  morn- 
ing. "The  neighbors  of  Mrs.  Bell  will  be  at 
the  trial  in  full  force  to  tell  of  your  daily  visits 
there  at  all  sorts  of  ungodly  hours.  Their  gos- 
sip indicates  that  they  believe  you  had  a  very 
serious  affair  on  with  her,  and  this,  together 
with  the  claim  of  the  surgeons  that  you  botched 
the  operation  on  the  child's  leg,  furnishes  a 
fairly  powerful  motive  for  the  crime,  at  least 
in  the  public  mind.  Jack,"  he  asked,  with  a 
mixture  of  doubt  and  anxiety,  "did  you  really 
have  an  affair  with  her?" 
194, 


Dr.  Earl  Is  Indicted  for  Murder 

"Nonsense,  Frank,  nonsense,"  answered  his 
brother.  "It  is  true  that  I  went  there  at  rather 
unusual  hours ;  I  was  pretty  busy,  and  when  I 
found  she  was  in  the  habit  of  sitting  up  until 
after  midnight  I  used  to  drop  in  there  when 
I  was  through  for  the  day.  I  don't  think  1 
ever  went  there  later  than  nine-thirty  or  ten, 
and  I  seldom  stayed  more  than  fifteen  or 
twenty  minutes.  Later  on  I  was,  and  I  still 
am,  greatly  worried  about  the  child.  Of  course 
my  operation  didn't  produce  tuberculosis ;  that 
is  silly,  but  it  serves  the  purposes  of  jealous 
rivals.  When  I  found  this  tubercular  condi- 
tion developing  I  asked  her  mother  a  great 
many  questions ;  it  seemed  to  me  so  improbable 
that  it  should  have  occurred  when  the  child  was 
really  having  better  care  than  usual,  judging 
from  their  surroundings,  that  I  sought  to  learn 
whether  it  was  not  a  recurrence  of  some  trouble 
she  had  apparently  outgrown,  and  from  her 
mother's  answers  I  think  there  is  absolutely  no 
doubt  that  this  is  true.  You  will  readily  see, 
under  the  circumstances,  that  I  did  not  time 
my  visits  watch  in  hand,  but  the  charge  of  a 
liaison  there  would  be  ridiculous  were  it  not  so 
vulgar  and  malicious.  There  was  some  sort  of 
195 


An  American  Suffragette 

a  tragedy  in  the  woman's  life,  but  I  have  no 
idea  whatever  as  to  its  nature." 

"With  your  handwriting  on  both  the  out- 
side and  inside  of  the  package,  your  intimate 
relations  with  the  family,  the  complications  of 
this  surgical  case,  the  fact  that  you  were  prac- 
tically in  Boston  at  the  time  the  package  was 
mailed,  and  the  total  lack  of  suspicion  of  any 
one  else,"  said  Frank,  checking  the  indictments 
off  on  his  fingers,  "they  have  a  fairly  convincing 
case  against  you,  old  man,  and  if  you  know 
anything  that  can  break  these  theories  down 
now  is  the  time  to  divulge  it." 

"Naturally,  if  there  were  anything  of  the 
kind  you  imply,  it  would  be  easier  for  me  to 
discuss  it  with  you  than  with  my  leading  coun- 
sel," his  brother  replied,  "but  equally,  of  course, 
in  such  a  case,  I  should  not  have  employed  a 
woman  to  defend  me ;  certainly  not  such  a  rabid 
feminist  as  Miss  Holland.  I  have  told  her  all 
I  know,  all  I  can  conjecture,  but  candidly, 
Frank,  I  fear  she  is  greatly  worried  over  the 
outcome.  I  know  the  difficulty  in  overcoming 
gossip  and  prejudice  and  jealousy,  and  if  that 
cannot  be  done  I  fear  I  must  pay  the  penalty 
of  being  the  target  of  their  shafts.  Crushing 
196 


Dr.  Earl  Is  Indicted  for  Murder 

as  that  is,  there  is  one  haunting  thought  that 
is  even  more  intolerable,"  he  concluded. 

"And  that  is?" 

"That  the  last  thought  of  that  unhappy 
woman  was  that  I  sent  the  candied  fruit.  She 
may  have  realized  in  that  brief  second  of  time 
that  it  caused  her  death.  I  hope  to  prove  my 
innocence  to  the  world,  but  she  has  passed  be- 
yond the  reach  of  proof." 

"She  has  also  passed  beyond  the  need  of  it," 
answered  his  brother  quickly.  "Why  don't  you 
comfort  yourself  with  the  thought  that,  no  mat- 
ter who  else  may  be  deceived,  wherever  she  is, 
she  knows  the  truth?" 

There  had  been  something  akin  to  despair  in 
his  voice,  and  Frank  noticed  how  trouble  had 
deepened  the  lines  in  his  face.  "Brace  up,  old 
fellow,"  he  said  huskily.  "We'll  get  a  line  on 
something  before  we  go  to  trial." 

Dr.  Earl  did  not  see  Leonora  or  hear  from 
her  directly  again  after  their  interview,  but  the 
Sunday  following  the  announcement  that  Miss 
Holland  had  been  employed  to  defend  him,  an 
item  appeared  in  the  society  columns  of  the 
New  York  papers  stating  that  their  engage- 
ment had  been  terminated.  He  sighed  when  he 
read  it,  whether  from  sorrow  or  relief  he  could 
197 


An  American  Suffragette 

scarcely  have  told  himself.  But  he  fully  real- 
ized at  this  time  that  the  vital  heart-heats  of 
genuine  love  are  not  always  inspired  by 
plighted  troth,  neither  is  the  latter  always  a 
product  of  the  former,  and  he  marveled  at  his 
own  lack  of  understanding  in  so  readily  accept- 
ing a  superficial  substitute  for  the  real  article. 
The  Ramseys  gave  every  evidence  of  their 
devotion,  seeing  him  daily,  and  there  were  not 
wanting  a  few  staunch  friends,  and  numerous 
former  patients  showed  their  loyalty,  but  as 
the  day  of  his  trial  approached  he  found  him- 
self thinking  more  and  more  of  the  four  de- 
voted souls  who  had  done  and  would  do  all  for 
him  that  was  humanly  possible. 


198 


CHAPTER   XIX 

A  GREAT  MURDER  TRIAL  BEGINS 

ALTHOUGH  the  court  officials  had  taken  the 
precaution  to  admit  spectators  only  by  cards 
issued  from  the  sheriff's  office,  the  famous  old 
room  in  the  Criminal  Courts  Building  was 
jammed  to  its  very  doors  at  the  opening  of  the 
trial  of  Dr.  John  Earl  for  the  murder  of  Mrs. 
Emma  Bell,  for  it  must  be  remembered  sheriffs 
are  elected  by  popular  vote  and  have  friends 
in  all  walks  of  life.  So  there  were  business  men 
and  street  urchins,  ladies  of  fashion  and  wash- 
erwomen, members  of  the  learned  professions 
and  hoboes,  scholars  and  draymen,  students  of 
psychology  and  the  merely  curious,  advocates 
in  frock-coats  and  counsellors  in  jackets,  at- 
tracted by  the  ever-living  fascination  of  seeing 
a  human  being  fighting  for  his  life,  with  the 
added  interest  in  this  case  of  the  novelty  of 
seeing  that  fight  made  by  a  woman  attorney. 

Many  tragic  memories  cling  to  this  old  room. 
199 


An  American  Suffragette 

Here  other  doctors  had  been  convicted  and 
sentenced  to  the  electric  chair  for  sending 
poison  through  the  mails.  Here  more  ordinary 
individuals  had  been  acquitted  by  displaying 
more  skill  in  the  transaction  than  had  been 
shown  by  the  doctors.  Here  had  been  tried  all 
sorts  of  murder  cases,  with  all  sorts  of  de- 
fenses, from  self-preservation  with  an  ax  to  the 
irresponsibility  of  a  brain-storm.  From  that 
old-fashioned  witness  chair,  on  its  high  plat- 
form, enough  tales  of  tragedy  had  been  told, 
if  bound  in  books,  to  fill  a  good-sized  library ; 
enough  tears  had  been  shed  to  atone  for  a  thou- 
sand crimes;  enough  pathos  shown  to  have 
broken  a  million  hearts;  enough  perjury  com- 
mitted to  substantiate  David's  somewhat 
sweeping  assertion. 

From  that  high  perch  against  the  wall  had 
emanated  the  technical  rulings,  or  the  broad 
principles  of  justice  that  had  made  society 
tremble  for  its  safety,  or  caused  it  to  repose  in 
security. 

From  that  old  counsel's  table  some  of  the 
greatest  lawyers  of  the  world  had  measured 
steel  in  weird  combats  over  sending  human 
souls  into  the  mysterious  Beyond. 

On  this  day,  the  district  attorney  sat  at  one 
200 


A  Great  Murder  Trial  Begins 

side  of  the  table,  with  his  assistants,  grave, 
severe,  determined-looking  officers  of  the  law. 
On  the  other  side  sat  a  beautiful  young  woman, 
with  luminous  eyes,  a  spirituelle  countenance, 
but  a  firm  and  earnest  manner  and  perfect 
poise.  Behind  her  sat  the  younger  brother  of 
the  prisoner.  At  her  side  was  the  prisoner  him- 
self, grave  in  mien,  courageous  in  bearing,  col- 
lected in  deportment.  Back  of  them  were  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Ramsey.  Among  the  witnesses  for 
the  defense  was  Dr.  Morris,  saturnine,  mock- 
ing, indifferent. 

Thus  organized  society  arrayed  itself  against 
a  portion  of  its  own  elements.  Thus  organized 
society  spoke  through  the  cold  impassiveness 
of  its  own  laws,  while  its  elements  spoke 
through  personal  emotions  and  human  pas- 
sions. Thus  organized  society  appealed  to 
itself  to  protect  itself,  while  its  elements  ap- 
pealed for  human  kindness  and  universal 
charity. 

Such  is  the  situation  in  every  criminal  trial. 

It  took  three  days  to  obtain  a  jury  of  proper 
qualification  and  sufficient  disinterestedness  to 
satisfy  both  sides.  All  the  other  lawyers 
watched  with  interest  the  methods  employed  by 
the  "woman  lawyer"  in  asking  her  voir  dire 
201 


An  American  Suffragette 

questions  and  in  exercising  her  right  to  chal- 
lenge, and  most  of  them  agreed  that  she  asked 
no  useless  questions  and  showed  rare  judgment 
in  her  peremptory  challenges. 

The  next  day  on  the  convening  of  court  the 
district  attorney  outlined  his  case  with  circum- 
stantial detail.  He  related  in  spectacular  fash- 
ion the  first  meeting  of  Dr.  Earl  and  the  Bells 
at  the  suffrage  ball,  and  dwelt  insinuatingly 
upon  the  interest  manifested  by  Dr.  Earl  in  the 
child  at  the  time  of  the  accident.  Either  inad- 
vertently, or  by  design,  he  referred  in  slighting 
tones  to  the  part  played  at  this  meeting  by  the 
"volunteer  nurse,"  but  his  sentence  was  never 
completed,  for  Silvia  addressed  the  Court. 

"May  it  please  the  Court,"  she  said — and  her 
manner  was  unmistakable — "I  have  no  right, 
and  neither  do  I  intend,  to  complain  of  any 
respectful  reference  made  to  me  during  the 
course  of  this  trial,  either  as  an  individual,  or 
as  an  attorney  for  this  defendant,  but  I  shall 
insist  now  and  hereafter  that  I  must  be  referred 
to  with  the  respect  and  consideration  due  my, 
as  yet,  unsullied  membership  in  the  legal  pro- 
fession and  my  reputation  as  a  private  citizen." 

There  was  no  opportunity  for  a  ruling  by 
the  Court,  for  the  district  attorney  promptly 
202 


A  Great  Murder  Trial  Begins 

disclaimed  any  intention  of  disrespect,  and 
begged  her  pardon  for  any  words  susceptible 
of  such  construction.  It  was  evident  that  her 
interruption  produced  a  most  favorable  impres- 
sion upon  Court,  jury  and  spectators,  and  if 
any  came  to  scoff  at  the  weakness  of  the 
"woman  attorney"  they  remained  to  admire 
the  strength  of  the  female  advocate.  The  dis- 
trict attorney  continued,  warmed  into  greater 
determination  to  make  a  lasting  impression 
upon  the  jury  as  to  the  guilt  of  the  defendant. 
He  followed  Dr.  Earl  on  his  numerous  visits 
to  the  Bell  home ;  dwelt  upon  the  unusual  hour 
of  many  of  them;  agreed  to  prove  more  than 
ordinary  intimacy  between  Mrs.  Bell  and  the 
defendant;  showed  the  defects  in  his  surgery 
and  the  terrible  results,  which  promised  perma- 
nently to  cripple  the  child ;  exhibited  the  hand- 
writing upon  the  box  and  placed  beside  it  the 
handwriting  of  Dr.  Earl  to  undisputed  legal 
documents;  stated  that  the  defense  would 
scarcely  claim  that  the  handwriting  was  not 
his ;  asserted  that  they  had  positive  proof  that 
Dr.  Earl  had  purchased  a  box  of  candied  fruit 
of  the  exact  size  and  character  of  this  box  just 
prior  to  the  time  it  was  mailed,  and  that  Dr. 
203 


An  American  Suffragette 

Earl  was  in  Boston  at  the  time  of  the  mailing 
of  the  package. 

From  his  recital  it  was  clear  that  much  thor- 
ough detective  work  had  been  done  in  the  case 
for  the  State. 

"Now,  gentlemen  of  the  jury,  as  to  the  mo- 
tive," he  went  on.  "A  powerful  incentive  ex- 
isted for  the  commission  of  this  crime.  Dr.  Earl 
had  been  engaged  for  some  time  to  marry  into 
one  of  the  most  prominent  and  wealthy  families 
in  this  city  and  the  wedding  was  to  have  taken 
place  this  month.  The  advertisement  that  fol- 
lowed his  spectacular  professional  performance 
at  the  suffrage  ball  brought  him  an  enormous 
practice.  To  have  the  public  learn  that  this 
piece  of  surgery  upon  which  his  reputation  was 
based  was  in  reality  a  case  of  malpractice 
meant  ruin.  To  have  his  married  life  disturbed 
by  the  appearance  of  a  wronged  woman  meant 
destruction  to  his  domestic  happiness,  so  he 
planned  that  the  poison  should  be  sent  to  wipe 
out  this  family  on  the  eve  of  his  wedding  and 
before  any  damage  had  been  done  him  in  either 
of  these  directions.  You  must  confess  it  was 
a  skillful  job.  Only  one  piece  of  poisoned  fruit 
in  the  box,  and  that  so  arranged  as  not  to  dis- 
turb its  contents.  Whether  mother  or  daugh- 
204 


A  Great  Murder  Trial  Begins 

ter  got  this  piece  of  candied  fruit  first,  the  other 
was  doomed,  for  a  kiss  from  those  dying  lips 
would  have  conveyed  a  like  fate,  so  powerful 
was  this  solution.  The  only  thing  that  thwarted 
his  nefarious  purpose  to  kill  them  both  was  the 
absence  of  the  child,  who  was  in  the  country,  a 
fact  entirely  unknown  to  Dr.  Earl." 

This  and  much  more  of  like  import  furnished 
the  closing  portion  of  his  statement  to  the  jury, 
and  when  he  finished  it  was  apparent  that  his 
recital  had  made  a  deep  impression  upon  every 
person  in  the  courtroom.  The  atmosphere 
was  charged  with  serious  import  to  Dr.  Earl. 

His  sister  had  moved  closer  to  him  and  was 
holding  his  hand.  Her  husband  came  nearer, 
and  Frank  turned  and  gave  him  a  reassuring 
glance.  His  expressive  face  showed  deep  con- 
cern rather  than  worry. 

As  soon  as  the  district  attorney  resumed  his 
seat  Silvia  arose  and  deathlike  stillness  fell 
upon  the  courtroom.  "With  your  permission, 
your  honor,  I  will  reserve  my  statement  of 
defense  until  the  State  has  closed  its  case." 

"Certainly,  that  is  your  privilege,"  replied 
the  Judge. 

Then  there  was  a  buzz  of  excited  whispering. 
"What  does  it  mean?"  "Is  she  afraid  to  state 
205 


An  American  Suffragette 

her  defense  after  that  terrific  arraignment  of 
the  defendant?"  "Oh,  there  comes  in  the  tim- 
idity of  woman!"  said  an  old  and  skilled  crim- 
inal lawyer.  "Does  she  not  realize  that  it  is  a 
fatal  evidence  of  weakness  not  to  state  a  de- 
fense at  the  opening  of  the  trial?" 

But  the  district  attorney  had  called  his  first 
witness  and  the  bailiff  rapped  loudly  for  order. 
For  three  days  the  State  put  witness  after  wit- 
ness on  the  stand  and  by  expert  medical  testi- 
mony, by  toxicolcgists,  by  direct  and  inferen- 
tial testimony,  the  district  attorney  more  than 
proved  the  case  which  he  had  outlined  to  the 
jury. 

That  the  child  was  probably  permanently 
crippled  from  tuberculosis  of  the  knee  and  that 
the  tuberculosis  resulted  from  faulty  surgery 
was  the  opinion  of  the  three  surgical  experts 
called  upon  that  point,  but  upon  cross-exam- 
ination Silvia  forced  each  of  them  to  admit  that 
it  was  possible  that  a  former  tubercular  condi- 
tion had  recurred.  She  also  forced  the  unwill- 
ing admission  that  so  far  as  the  fracture  of  the 
leg  was  concerned  the  bones  had  knit  perfectly. 
The  most  damaging  testimony  was  that  of  a 
neighbor  woman,  who  had  overheard  Mrs.  Bell 
exclaim  to  herself  on  the  very  day  of  the  poison- 
206 


A  Great  Murder  Trial  Begins 

ing,  "I  will  force  him  to  marry  me  or  I  will 
kill  him!" 

Pressed  on  cross-examination  as  to  what  she 
saw  as  well  as  heard,  she  related  how  she  had 
passed  Mrs.  Bell's  door,  which  was  open,  and 
had  seen  Mrs.  Bell  with  a  document  of  some 
kind  in  one  hand  and  a  pen  in  the  other,  and 
had  heard  her  utter  this  exclamation.  When 
asked  why  she  assumed  that  the  statement  must 
refer  to  Dr.  Earl,  she  replied  with  some  feeling 
that  no  other  man  had  been  seen  around  the 
apartment  since  Mrs.  Bell  moved  in,  the  first 
of  April. 

A  young  woman,  a  clerk  in  Thompson's 
candy  store  in  Boston,  identified  Dr.  Earl  as 
the  purchaser  of  a  box  of  candied  fruit  a  few 
days  before  the  poisoning.  On  cross-examina- 
tion she  said  it  was  a  box  of  identical  pro- 
portions with  the  one  marked  "Exhibit  A." 
Silvia  asked  her  if  the  boxes  from  their  store 
did  not  always  bear  the  firm  name  on  the  lid 
and  she  admitted  that  they  did,  and  swore  that 
the  one  purchased  by  Dr.  Earl  had  the  firm 
name  on  the  outside  of  the  lid  in  gilt  letters. 
Then  Silvia  showed  her  the  box  which  had  con- 
tained the  poisoned  fruit  and  asked  her  to  state 
on  oath  whether  or  not  that  was  the  box  in 
207 


An  American  Suffragette 

which  she  had  sold  Dr.  Earl  the  fruit  and  she 
declared  that  it  was  not.  Then  she  asked  her 
if  Dr.  Earl  had  purchased  any  loose  pieces  of 
fruit,  and  she  testified  that  he  had  not. 

Silvia  produced  a  box  and  asked  the  witness 
if  it  were  not  from  the  Thompson  store.  She 
answered  that  it  was. 

"Did  not  Dr.  Earl  also  purchase  a  box  of 
pecans  at  the  time  that  he  bought  the  fruit  and 
is  not  this  the  box  in  which  the  pecans  were 
packed?"  Silvia  continued. 

The  girl  seemed  to  study  for  a  few  moments. 
"Yes,  I  do  remember,"  she  said,  "he  did  buy 
a  box  of  pecans  the  same  day  he  bought  the 
candied  fruit  and  this  box  may  have  con- 
tained them,  for  it  is  from  our  store.  I  want 
to  add,  though,  that  I  had  forgotten  about  the 
nuts  when  the  district  attorney  asked  his 
questions  here  and  when  I  was  examined  in 
Boston." 

"How  did  you  happen  to  forget  about  the 
nuts  and  remember  about  the  candied  fruit?" 
asked  Silvia. 

"There  was  nothing  to  recall  the  pecans  to 
my  mind  until  you  mentioned  them  just  now, 
but  I  remember  that  Dr.  Earl  bought  them 
208 


A  Great  Murder  Trial  Begins 

first  and  returned  afterward  and  bought  the 
fruit." 

On  redirect  examination  the  district  attorney 
got  an  admission  from  the  clerk  that  at  several 
places  in  Boston,  which  she  mentioned,  boxes 
could  be  obtained  without  any  name  on  the 
lid,  but  that  the  Thompson  store  never  carried 
them. 

The  testimony  of  this  clerk  that  the  box  pre- 
sented by  the  district  attorney  had  not  come 
from  their  store,  was  the  only  rift  in  the  other- 
wise dense  cloud  of  incriminating  evidence  for 
the  State,  and  the  prosecution  closed  its  case 
with  perceptible  gloom  hanging  over  every  per- 
son connected  with  the  defense,  and  the  jury 
was  grave  of  face,  as  men  well  may  be  who 
have  the  life  of  a  fellow  being  in  their  hands. 

The  prosecution  closed  at  four-thirty  and 
Silvia  asked  for  an  adjournment  until  morning 
to  open  her  case.  The  request  was  granted, 
and  New  York  spent  the  night  wondering  what 
the  "woman  lawyer"  would  do  the  next  day. 
In  the  cafes,  clubs,  hotels,  between  acts  in  the 
theatres,  little  else  was  discussed,  and  the  con- 
sensus of  opinion  was  that  she  was  doomed  to 
defeat  in  this  her  first  big  trial. 

Progressive  women  grieved  over  the  outlook, 
209 


An  American  Suffragette 

for  it  spelled  much  of  disaster  to  the  woman 
movement  if  she  should  be  humiliatingly  van- 
quished. Her  friends  championed  her  cause  as 
best  they  could,  vigorously,  but  not  with  the 
genuine  enthusiasm  they  would  like  to  have  felt. 
New  York  had  never  before  been  so  inter- 
ested in  a  criminal  trial. 


210 


CHAPTER   XX 

A  WOMAN  AND  SPOOKS  FIND  A  LETTER 

THE  trial  had  been  in  progress  some  six  days 
when  the  State  rested  its  case.  None  of  the 
family  or  friends  of  the  defendant  underesti- 
mated the  impression  created  by  the  array  of 
facts  marshalled  by  the  district  attorney.  The 
evidence,  though  wholly  circumstantial,  was 
nevertheless  sinister  and  deadly. 

Hilda  Ramsey,  white  and  worn,  kissed  her 
brother  with  quivering  lips  and  went  out  of 
the  court  leaning  on  her  husband's  arm,  and 
making  no  pretense  of  concealing  her  suffering. 
Neither  her  belief  in  her  brother's  innocence, 
nor  her  confidence  in  Silvia's  ability  to  prove 
it,  could  counteract  the  pain  and  humiliation 
of  the  past  weeks.  Ramsey  wrung  his  brother- 
in-law's  hand,  and  gave  him  a  look  more  elo- 
quent than  words,  and  Frank  bade  him  brace 
up.  "  'Thrice  is  he  armed  that  hath  his  quarrel 
211 


An  American  Suffragette 

just,'  you  know,  old  fellow,"  he  said,  with  a 
slap  on  the  shoulder. 

There  was  a  grayish  pallor  on  Silvia's  face 
as  she  gave  her  client  her  hand,  but  he  was  as 
composed  and  almost  as  cheerful  as  if  he  were 
but  "a  looker-on  in  Vienna"  as  he  once  more 
assured  her  and  Frank  of  his  entire  confidence 
in  a  verdict  of  acquittal. 

"If  you  will  pardon  me,"  he  said,  looking  at 
Silvia  kindly,  "I  will  change  places  with  you 
and  be  the  counsellor  for  a  moment,  and  advise 
you  to  eat  a  good  dinner  of  very  simple  things, 
then  disconnect  your  telephone  and  go  to  bed 
and  read  Omar  till  you  fall  asleep;  there  are 
times  when  it  is  an  immense  comfort  to  re- 
member that — 

'"He  that  tossed  you  down  into  the  Field, 
He  knows  about  it  all— He  knows!  He  knows!'" 

His  quiet  voice  acted  like  a  tonic,  and  her 
face  was  full  of  gratitude  as  she  bade  him  good- 
night, and  turned  to  confer  with  Frank.  Car- 
roll stood  by  the  reporters'  tables,  irresolutely, 
until  presently  Silvia  beckoned  her.  The  two 
women  exchanged  looks  which  were  enigmat- 
ical to  Frank,  but  evidently  perfectly  intelligi- 
ble to  them,  for  Carroll  turned  away  with  a 
212 


A  Woman  and  Spooks  Find  a  Letter 

sound  like  a  strangled  sob,  and  the  pall  of 
weariness  and  depression  which  had  lifted  for 
a  moment  again  settled  over  Silvia,  now  that 
there  were  no  longer  any  prying  or  unfriendly 
eyes  upon  them.  Without  another  word  she 
turned  and  went  down  to  her  car.  Frank 
waited  until  Carroll  gathered  up  her  "copy," 
and  then  they  went  out  into  the  street  together. 

"Why  didn't  you  go  home  with  Miss  Hol- 
land?" he  asked.  "She  looked  as  if  she  wanted 
you;  I  supposed  she  was  going  to  ask  you 
when  she  called  you  over." 

"Not  she,"  answered  the  girl.  "She  knows 
better  than  to  prepare  for  the  great  day  of  her 
life  by  gabbling  half  the  night.  Besides,  I'm 
too  blue  to  be  of  any  use  to  her." 

"Anything  happened?"  he  asked,  too  ab- 
sorbed in  his  own  affairs  to  give  other  matters 
more  than  perfunctory  attention. 

"Yes,"  she  said,  vexation  in  her  voice.  "I've 
fallen  down  on  an  assignment,  the  biggest  I've 
had  since  I  came  to  New  York,  and  I'm  all 
broken  up  over  it." 

He  turned  and  looked  at  her,  conscious  of  a 

sense  of  disappointment  out  of  all  proportion 

to  the  occasion.    It  was  the  first  time  he  had 

ever  known  her  to  fail  in  comprehension  or 

213 


An  American  Suffragette 

sympathy;  that  she  could  even  remember,  let 
alone  obtrude,  a  small  personal  grievance  of 
her  own  in  the  face  of  the  tragedy  that  sur- 
rounded them,  was  so  utterly  out  of  keeping 
with  her  character  that  he  looked  at  her  in 
amazement,  and  it  took  him  several  minutes 
to  control  his  voice  so  as  to  make  the  proper 
politely  concerned  query  as  to  the  demands  of 
the  city  editor  which  had  proved  too  much  for 
her  well-known  ability. 

"It  wasn't  the  city  editor,"  she  said,  too  un- 
happy to  notice  the  icy  timbre  of  his  voice. 
"It's  a  good  thing  to  disappoint  them  once  in 
a  while ;  keeps  'em  from  expecting  you  to  outdo 
the  labors  of  Hercules  in  time  to  beat  the  morn- 
ing papers.  No,  it  was  something  I  was  to  do 
for  Silvia,  and  I  can't  make  good;  at  least  I 
haven't,  and  I'm  at  the  end  of  my  resources." 

In  spite  of  the  fact  that  it  was  still  broad 
daylight,  and  a  crowded  thoroughfare,  Frank 
Earl  stopped  and  gave  her  hand  a  cordial  grip 
that  made  her  wince.  "You're  all  right,"  he 
said.  "You're  all  right.  Now  let's  go  and 
have  dinner." 

"Are  you  not  going  to  the  Ramseys'?"  she 
asked,  evidently  taking  it  for  granted  that  the 
214 


A  Woman  and  Spooks  Find  a  Letter 

family  would  wish  to  be  together  at  such  a 
time. 

"Oh,  no,"  he  answered.  "Hilda  will  go 
straight  to  bed,  poor  girl;  and  Ramsey  will  sit 
beside  her  and  dab  cologne  on  her  forehead, 
and  after  a  while  he'll  coax  her  to  eat  a  cracker 
and  drink  some  tea,  and  he'll  have  his  dinner 
right  there  beside  her.  You  don't  know  the 
turtle-doves.  I  don't  hanker  for  my  own  society 
to-night,  but  I  shall  have  to  put  up  with  it  un- 
less you  take  pity  on  me." 

"I  can't,  Frank,"  she  answered.  "I  simply 
can't  eat  when  my  mind  is  so  upset;  I'm  going 
straight  home." 

"And  make  your  supper  on  crackers  and 
tea,  I  suppose,"  he  said  disgustedly.  "Well,  in 
that  case,  I'll  go  for  a  tramp  and  try  to  get  rid 
of  the  cobwebs  in  my  brain,  and  the  stuffy  air 
of  that  courtroom.  I  always  feel  as  if  twenty 
centuries  of  alleged  justice,  injustice  and  mal- 
practice looked  down  upon  me  when  I  get  into 
court ;  that's  one  reason  why  I'm  no  good  as  a 
trial  lawyer.  Here,  isn't  this  your  street?" 

"Yes,  no — I  don't  live  where  I  did  any  more 
just  now,"  she  answered  lucidly.  He  stopped 
and  looked  at  her  and  smiled  in  spite  of  every  - 
215 


An  American  Suffragette 

thing.  "I've  sent  in  my  copy,  and  you  can 
walk  up  with  me,  if  you  want  to." 

They  walked  on  in  silence;  Frank  was  evi- 
dently thinking  deeply,  and  Carroll  was  fol- 
lowing some  weary  round  of  conjecture  for  the 
thousandth  time  when  she  stopped  at  her  num- 
ber. Frank  looked  at  it  and  then  at  her,  startled 
out  of  his  usual  debonair  manner  for  once. 

"Why— it  is— 

"Yes,"  she  answered.  "I've  been  living  here 
for  some  time,  but  that  wasn't  for  publication, 
so  I  kept  my  other  room,  and  had  my  mail  go 
there  as  usual.  Silvia  desired  it." 

"She  hasn't  left  any  stone  unturned,"  he  said 
musingly.  "I  wonder  what  was  in  that  letter!" 

"Oh,  she  has  told  you,  then?"  Carroll  asked. 

"About  Mrs.  Bell's  letter  to  her?  Oh,  yes, 
she  told  me  to-night,  just  before  you  joined 
us;  I  thought  you  knew  about  it.  Anyhow,  it 
seems  to  be  gone  beyond  recall.  Don't  you 
intend  to  invite  me  in?  Well,  of  all  the  inhos- 
pitable persons!  I'll  see  you  in  the  morning," 
and  lifting  his  hat  he  went  on  up  the  Avenue. 

Carroll  climbed  the  two  flights  slowly  and 
unlocked  her  door.  The  suite  across  the  hall 
had  been  vacated  by  a  superstitious  tenant  the 
week  after  the  murder,  and  the  family  imme- 


A  Woman  and  Spooks  Find  a  Letter 

diately  below  had  moved  away  that  morning. 
As  Carroll  closed  the  door  behind  her  she  was 
conscious  of  a  sense  of  oppression.  It  was  not 
fear,  which  is  a  simple,  concrete  emotion,  easily 
understood ;  it  was  not  even  so  subtle  as  dread 
of  any  abstract  thing,  ghost  or  goblin  damned. 
She  gave  her  shoulders  a  little  shake,  as  if  the 
sensation  were  some  tangible  thing  to  be 
thrown  off,  and  laying  aside  her  hat  and  gloves 
she  went  through  to  the  buffet  kitchen  and  put 
the  kettle  on.  She  returned  to  the  sitting-room 
and  looked  about  her  uneasily,  and  then  put  on 
a  house  gown  and  slippers,  and  arranged  her 
tea-tray.  There  were  but  four  rooms  in  the 
apartment,  in  addition  to  the  kitchenette,  and 
but  one  of  them  offered  much  in  the  way  of 
light  or  ventilation,  so  Carroll  lived  in  the  front 
room,  as  Emma  Bell  had  lived  there;  she 
worked  there,  as  Emma  Bell  had  worked;  she 
looked  upon  the  same  nondescript  blue  wall 
paper,  and  the  few  pictures  that  relieved  its 
monotony.  With  some  misty  idea,  similar  to 
that  of  the  French  "confrontation"  she  had 
brought  none  of  her  own  books  or  belongings 
to  disturb  the  suggestion  of  the  room  as  it  had 
been.  There  were  three  large  windows,  through 
which  the  city  lights  were  beginning  to  shine; 
217 


An  American  Suffragette 

under  one  of  these  and  across  that  end  of  the 
room  was  a  divan,  covered  with  a  bright  rug; 
opposite  and  against  the  other  wall  was  a  desk, 
with  a  chair  before  it,  and  bookshelves,  and  a 
corner  cupboard  which  held  a  plentiful  supply 
of  tea-things.  Between  the  two  windows  near- 
est it  was  a  tea-table,  which  evidently  served  a 
double  purpose,  for  underneath  was  a  basket- 
ful of  neatly  folded  sewing.  By  the  table  was 
the  high-armed  mission  rocking-chair  in  which 
the  dead  woman  had  been  found.  Opposite 
was  the  little  sewing-chair,  usually  occupied  by 
Alice  when  she  and  her  mother  had  supper  to- 
gether at  the  table,  which  had  been  a  gift  of 
Silvia's.  Evidently  it  had  been  a  fancy  of  Mrs. 
Bell's  to  set  the  chair  for  the  child  before  she 
opened  the  fatal  box,  and  Carroll  had  kept  both 
chairs  in  their  relative  positions.  The  doorway 
into  the  alcove  bedroom  was  concealed  by  a 
portiere. 

There  was  nothing  in  the  desk  now  but  some 
of  Carroll's  writing  materials;  everything  in 
the  room  had  been  ransacked  at  the  time  of  its 
mistress'  death,  and  Silvia  had  herself  searched 
carefully  for  anything  that  might  afford  a  pos- 
sible clue.  Sometimes  she  even  thought  that 
some  one,  possessing  a  key,  had  entered  the 
218 


A  Woman  and  Spooks  Find  a  Letter 

place  and  removed  all  evidence  while  that 
ghastly  witness  still  sat  in  the  chair,  for  there 
were  no  letters,  no  papers,  nothing.  Immedi- 
ately after  going  there  to  stay,  Carroll  had 
gone  over  the  tiny  place  with  systematic  care. 
There  was  no  upholstered  furniture  in  which 
anything  could  have  been  concealed;  even  the 
divan  was  a  rattan  affair;  there  were  only  rugs 
upon  the  floors.  The  mattress  revealed  noth- 
ing, and  though  she  laboriously  examined  every 
picture,  there  was  nothing  concealed  back  of 
them  or  within  the  frames. 

"Don't  you  think  the  letter  was  mailed?" 
Silvia  asked  her,  and  she  had  replied  that  while 
it  probably  had  been,  the  chances  were  that  a 
rough  draft  of  it  had  been  written,  and  pre- 
served somewhere,  and  it  was  for  this  that  she 
searched  until  it  became  evident  that  the  slight 
resources  of  the  flat  were  exhausted. 

It  was  rather  a  poor  little  place,  woefully 
lacking  in  the  closets  and  cubby-holes  so  dear 
to  women,  and  yet,  as  Carroll  sat  there  in  the 
child's  place,  with  her  second  cup  of  strong  tea 
getting  cold  beside  her,  she  found  herself  look- 
ing at  the  other  chair  expectantly,  and  the 
empty  desk  seemed  watching  her;  she  was  re- 
sentfully conscious  that  everything  in  that 
219 


An  American  Suffragette 

room  knew  the  truth,  everything  save  its  human 
occupant  with  her  keen  mind,  her  active  brain. 
The  hours  passed  and  still  she  sat  there,  wait- 
ing, waiting.  There  were  the  usual  noises,  com- 
monplace and  mysterious,  to  be  found  in  vacant 
houses,  but  about  nine  o'clock  she  became  con- 
scious that  there  were  sounds  in  the  recently 
vacated  flat  below.  Evidently  the  family  had 
come  back  for  some  last  articles  which  they  had 
left  behind.  They  were  a  quiet  old  couple  with 
whom  Carroll  had  exchanged  greetings  now 
and  then  on  the  stairs ;  the  old  lady  had  told  her 
they  were  going  to  live  with  their  daughter. 
Carroll  roused  herself  and  lit  the  gas,  and  a 
little  while  later  there  came  a  tap  at  the  door. 
She  was  frightened  for  a  second,  the  sound  was 
so  unexpected,  and  then  with  a  laugh  at  her 
foolishness  she  went  to  the  door  and  opened  it, 
revealing  an  old  man,  her  neighbor  from  the 
floor  below.  He  held  a  heavy  package  in  his 
arms,  and  explained,  rather  shamefacedly,  that 
they  had  no  high-chair,  and  when  their  little 
grandchild  was  brought  to  visit  them  Mrs, 
Bell  had  been  accustomed  to  lend  them  her  big 
dictionary.  "Not  bein'  literary  she  didn't  need 
it,  and  the  very  afternoon  of  the  day  she  died  I 
came  up  to  borrow  it,  same  as  usual;  she  had 
220 


A  Woman  and  Spooks  Find  a  Letter 

stepped  out,  but  the  door  was  ajar,  and  the 
dictionary  lying  right  on  the  end  of  the  divan, 
so  I  took  it,  and  when  I  brought  it  back  after 
supper  I  couldn't  get  in,  and  after  the  trouble 
my  wife  wrapped  it  up  and  put  it  away  for 
safe-keeping,  Miss,  and  forgot  it  till  we  come 
to  move,"  he  finished  breathlessly. 

He  put  the  package  on  the  divan,  and  Car- 
roll talked  with  him  a  few  moments  longer,  and 
then  locked  the  door  upon  his  retreating  form 
and  went  to  the  window,  and  stood  there,  look- 
ing out,  yet  seeing  nothing.  It  was  beginning 
to  rain,  and  the  cool,  damp  air  was  pleasant, 
but  she  shivered  and  turned  back  to  the  room 
that  still  kept  its  silent  mistress'  secret,  as  she 
had  kept  it,  even  in  death.  The  little  clock  on 
the  mantel  struck  ten,  and  there  was  a  quick, 
light  step  on  the  stair,  and  a  brisk  knock  at  her 
door.  As  she  opened  it,  Frank  stood  there, 
shaking  the  drops  of  water  from  his  hat. 

"I've  had  my  walk,"  he  said,  "I've  got  over 
my  gloom;  I've  lost  my  grouch,  but  I  still  have 
my  appetite  with  me.  Now  come  on,  like  a 
good  fellow,  and  let's  have  supper." 

"Oh,  go  away,  Frank,"  she  said,  almost  cry- 
ing with  vexation.    "I  was  almost  on  the  verge 
of  something  when  you  came." 
221 


An  American  Suffragette 

"That's  what  I  thought,"  he  said  cheerfully. 
"I  said,  'She'll  drink  a  pint  of  strong  tea  and 
sit  there  in  the  dark  until  the  rugs  begin  to 
wiggle  and  the  wall  paper  glowers  at  her.' 
You're  on  the  verge  of  nervous  prostration; 
that's  what  you're  on  the  verge  of,  and  nothing 
else.  Now  come  along,  or  have  I  got  to  come 
over  there  and  make  you?"  He  noticed  her 
negligee.  "Put  on  your  frock,  and  I'll  wait, 
but  hurry." 

"It's  raining,"  she  demurred,  "and  I  haven't 
my  raincoat  here." 

"I  brushed  by  one  in  the  hall,"  he  said,  and 
stepping  back  he  lifted  down  a  somewhat  shab- 
by gray  raincoat  and  flung  it  toward  her.  She 
picked  it  up,  and  slipped  it  on.  It  was  large, 
but  still  she  could  wear  it,  and  while  she  stood 
in  the  middle  of  the  room  hesitating,  she  slipped 
her  hands  into  the  capacious  pockets. 

"Well?"  demanded  Frank  impatiently. 

The  girl  did  not  answer,  but  stood  staring 
ahead  of  her.  Slowly  she  raised  her  left  hand, 
pressing  the  thumb  between  her  eyebrows,  and 
taking  the  right  hand  from  the  raincoat  pocket, 
she  stretched  it  out,  the  fingers  groping  uncer- 
tainly. She  turned  so  white  that  the  young 
man  in  the  doorway  stared,  frightened,  yet 
under  a  spell  that  forbade  his  moving.  Sud- 
222 


A  Woman  and  Spooks  Find  a  Letter 

denly  the  trembling,  questioning  hand  grew 
rigid,  and  without  an  instant's  hesitation  she 
turned  and  walked  to  the  divan,  and  laid  her 
hand  upon  the  bundle. 

"It  is  here,  Frank,"  she  said  quietly.  "Turn 
up  the  light,  and  cut  this  cord." 

He  did  so,  and  as  the  paper  fell  away  from 
the  dictionary,  she  opened  the  heavy  volume 
and  their  eyes  fell  upon  a  large  manila  en- 
velope plainly  addressed  to  "Miss  Silvia  Hol- 
land, City  Investment  Building,  New  York." 
The  girl  laid  her  hand  upon  it. 

"Wait  a  minute;  let  me  tell  you  what  hap- 
pened," she  said.  "When  the  postman  came 
she  gave  him  the  letter  for  Alice,  and  he  gave 
her  the  box.  She  didn't  give  him  this  letter  be- 
cause she  hadn't  stamps  enough — see,  it  has 
but  one — or  perhaps  she  meant  to  use  it  as  a 
threat;  there  was  somebody  who  had  a  motive 
for  killing  her.  The  woman  across  the  hall 
called  her  and  she  slipped  this  envelope  into 
the  dictionary  and  went  out,  leaving  her  door 
open;  old  Mr.  Dillon  came  up  and  got  the 
book;  he's  just  been  telling  me  about  it.  They; 
never  opened  it,  and  after  her  body  was 
found — Mrs.  Bell's,  I  mean — his  wife  was  so 
upset  that  she  went  to  her  daughter,  and  they 
forgot  it  entirely  until  to-night.  When  Mrs. 
223 


An  American  Suffragette 

Bell  came  back,  she  opened  the  package  the 
postman  had  given  her,  and  she  never  had  a 
chance  to  miss  anything  after  that." 

She  lifted  her  hand,  and  Frank  picked  up 
the  envelope  and  looked  at  it  and  then  at  her. 

"I  believe  you  have  solved  the  mystery,"  he 
said,  "and  that  all  you  have  not  learned  will  be 
revealed  when  Silvia  opens  this  envelope.  Oh, 
this  is  wonderful,  Carroll!  I'll  get  a  taxi,  and 
we'll  go  to  her  at  once." 

"I  wouldn't,"  said  the  girl.  "It'll  be  nearly 
midnight  by  the  time  we  can  get  there,  and  if 
it  is  bad  news — which  it  isn't — there's  nothing 
she  can  do  to-night,  and  if  it  is  good — and  I 
am  sure  it  is,  for  us  at  least — it  can  wait  until 
morning.  Whichever  it  is,  she  needs  a  night's 
sleep  before  she  faces  any  new  complication." 

She  took  the  envelope  and  looked  at  it  again, 
and  then  at  Frank  Earl.  With  a  little  laugh 
she  clutched  it  to  her  bosom,  and  holding  out 
the  other  hand  to  him,  she  said,  "Now,  I'm 
ready  to  go  to  the  kitchen  and  cook  anything 
there  is  to  be  found  in  this  section  of  New 
York!" 

"Carroll,"  he  said,  humbly,  "would  you  mind 
if  I  proposed  to  you  once  more?    We  seem  to 
need  you  in  our  family." 
224 


CHAPTER   XXI 

SILVIA  HOLLAND'S  GREAT  PLEA  TO  THE  JURY 

HOURS  before  court  time  the  next  morning 
an  immense  crowd  packed  the  streets  around 
the  building,  and  when  the  doors  were  opened 
it  was  useless  to  attempt  the  enforcement  of 
the  ticket  rule.  When  the  court  convened  the 
space  outside  the  rail  was  jammed  with  a  crowd 
that  threatened  to  overflow  the  space  inside 
which  was  reserved  for  members  of  the  legal 
profession,  witnesses,  and  the  family  of  the  de- 
fendant. It  was  an  orderly  crowd,  however, 
and  the  tension  of  silence  was  so  complete  that 
it  held  them  in  a  kind  of  paralysis  of  attention 
when  the  gavel  fell  and  the  stentorian  voice 
of  the  bailiff  called  his  "Hear  ye."  As  soon 
as  he  sat  down  the  Court  recognized  Silvia. 
She  took  her  place  at  the  end  of  the  counsel 
table  with  a  few  papers  within  reach.  The 
district  attorney  noticed  with  satisfaction  that 
they  were  very  few.  She  was  gowned  in  pure 
225 


An  American  Suffragette 

white,  and  her  hair  rippled  back  from  her  broad 
forehead,  and  with  head  proudly  erect  and  with 
easy,  natural  pose,  she  faced  the  jury,  which 
gave  her  instant  and  absorbed  attention.  She 
spoke  slowly,  deliberately,  and  her  soft,  musical 
voice  was  heard  distinctly  in  every  corner  of 
the  courtroom. 

"Gentlemen  of  the  Jury:  Human  life  is  the 
greatest  mystery  in  a  universe  of  mystery.  It 
springs  into  existence  with  the  knowledge  of 
the  ages  coursing  through  its  sensibilities  and 
inherently  possessing  all  of  the  passion  and 
prejudice  of  countless  centuries.  Where  it 
started  none  of  us  knows.  Where  the  aeons 
ahead  of  us  destine  it  to  end  none  of  us  can  tell. 
Deliberately  to  blot  from  this  earth  and  its 
service  that  which  comes  into  the  world  so 
divinely  equipped  with  knowledge  and  inspira- 
tion requires  both  sublime  courage  and  inde- 
scribable depravity;  sublime  courage  to  invite 
the  hostility  of  the  vast,  complicated,  mysteri- 
ous forces  that  are  embodied  in  a  human  life, 
however  humble  it  may  be;  indescribable  de- 
pravity to  destroy  the  most  useful  and  the  most 
beautiful  product  of  this  earth. 

"Yet  the  statute  in  this  and  other  American 
States  for  the  punishment  of  those  who  take 
226 


Silvia  Holland's  Great  Plea  to  the  Jury 

human  life  is  made  to  apply  but  to  a  fraction 
of  those  guilty  of  such  offense.  The  individual 
who  shoots  or  otherwise  takes  the  life  of  an- 
other is  always  prosecuted  and  generally  pun- 
ished. The  association,  whose  culpable  neglect 
of  the  ordinary  dictates  of  humanity  in  making 
its  employees  safe,  is  not  even  prosecuted  for 
factory  girls  destroyed  in  a  fire,  for  miners  en- 
tombed in  the  earth,  for  passengers  and  train- 
men hurled  to  their  death  that  dividends  may 
be  wrung  from  soft  roadbeds  and  rotten  rails, 
for  excursion  boats  so  built  as  to  prevent  the 
saving  of  passengers  in  case  of  accident;  and 
what  must  be  said  of  those  economic  and  social 
conditions  that  drive  thousands  to  self-detruc- 
tion  every  year  and  that  destroy  all  Christian 
and  political  ideals,  the  proper  development  of 
which  would  preclude  the  possibility  of  crime! 
"You,  gentlemen,  represent  the  collected  so- 
ciety of  which  I  am  a  part,  and  the  fact  is  worth 
your  consideration  at  least,  that  under  the  sys- 
tem of  woman  parasitism,  dependence,  and,  in  a 
way,  slavery,  the  rugged  qualities  of  strength 
of  purpose,  of  womanly  self-reliance,  of  con- 
stantly expanding  mental  and  moral  natures 
that  so  distinguished  our  foremothers,  and 
which  mean  so  much  to  the  character  of  chil- 
227 


An  American  Suffragette 

dren,  which  in  turn  mean  so  much  to  the  char- 
acter of  the  citizen  and  the  nation,  have  largely 
disappeared. 

"In  every  consideration  of  crime,  its  cause 
should  be  of  interest  to  those  who  represent  the 
State.  I  am  not  seeking  to  minimize  or  palliate 
or  excuse  whatever  crime  may  have  been  com- 
mitted in  this  case,  but  that  society  which  is 
seeking  its  own  safety  and  perpetuity  cannot 
too  strongly  be  urged  to  beware  of  the  uni- 
versal menace  to  its  existence,  as  well  as  to 
guard  against  those  individuals  that  war  only 
against  individuals.  So  I  appeal  to  you  in  this 
case,  if  crime  there  be,  to  deal  with  the  perpe- 
trator of  such  crime  with  all  due  justice,  but 
with  that  mercy  and  consideration  which  these 
thoughts  may  suggest,  and  which  we  owe  to  the 
weaker  members  of  society. 

"Whatever  crime  was  committed  in  this  case 
sprang  from  the  old  order  of  our  existence, 
which  is  rapidly  passing  away;  it  was  nurtured 
in  that  soil  which  most  of  us  cultivate  too  much, 
and  which  produces  envy,  malice,  hatred,  un- 
charitableness  and  other  destructive  and  de- 
spoiling human  traits.  I  have  no  quarrel  with 
the  character  of  the  testimony  with  which  it  is 
sought  to  convict  the  defendant,  for  circum- 
228 


Silvia  Holland's  Great  Plea  to  the  Jury 

stantial  evidence  is  the  most  reliable,  the  most 
convincing,  the  least  subject  to  perjury  of  any 
evidence  recognized  by  the  law,  and,  as  I  shall 
undertake  to  demonstrate  to  you,  it  is  abso- 
lutely unassailable  when  each  link  of  the  chain 
fits  perfectly  in  every  other  one.  I  am  not  un- 
mindful of  the  very  strong  case  which  the  dis- 
trict attorney  has  made  against  the  defendant, 
and  it  may  be  that  his  contention  is  the  correct 
one.  That  is  a  matter  for  you  to  determine." 

There  was  a  little  stir  in  the  courtroom  at 
this  extraordinary  statement,  and  Hilda  looked 
at  her  husband  and  then  at  her  brother  and  the 
hot  flush  of  resentment  dyed  her  white  face  to 
the  hair. 

"The  motive  of  malpractice  on  the  child," 
Silvia  went  on  evenly,  "and  a  troublesome 
liaison  with  the  mother  do,  indeed,  seem  to  be 
powerful,  but  what  can  be  said  for  those  mo- 
tives when  I  prove  to  your  entire  satisfaction 
that  the  setting  of  this  fracture  and  the  subse- 
quent treatment  and  final  results  are  among 
some  of  the  best  ever  attending  such  cases  in 
this  large  city;  that  the  tuberculosis  of  the  knee 
is  the  recurrence  of  a  disease  which  had  at- 
tacked the  child  five  years  before  in  the  glands 
of  the  neck  and  which  broke  forth  afresh  in 
229 


An  American  Suffragette 

the  knee  because  of  her  low  physical  condition 
and  the  immediate  injury  to  the  knee;  that 
what  I  shall  present  will  so  conclusively  prove 
the  impossibility  of  a  liaison  between  Dr.  Earl 
and  Mrs.  Bell  that  there  cannot  even  remain 
the  suspicion  of  such  a  thing? 

"The  mystery  of  her  support  since  last  April 
I  alone  can  clear  up  with  checks  and  other  evi- 
dence so  convincing  in  character  as  to  leave  no 
doubt.  It  is  embarrassing  but  necessary  to 
bring  myself  as  a  witness  into  this  trial.  I 
found  this  poor  woman  with  a  great  and  secret 
sorrow,  not  knowing  how  to  earn  a  living  and 
by  industrial  independence  develop  the  best 
qualities  of  her  nature,  and  I  undertook  to 
teach  her  self-reliance  and  to  lead  her  into  the 
new  life  of  social  and  economic  freedom.  Had 
she  been  thus  trained  from  girlhood  this  trag- 
edy would  have  been  impossible,  and  her  life 
would  have  been  full  of  beauty,  for  I  have  never 
known  a  sweeter  character.  In  the  meantime 
I  loaned — not  gave,  but  loaned  her  the  money 
to  live  upon.  She  would  have  resented  a  gift. 
She  was  making  splendid  progress  with  her 
fine  sewing,  and  would  soon  have  been  inde- 
pendent of  any  financial  aid.  But  the  sorrow 
which  hung  over  her,  and  which  all  this  time 
230 


Silvia  Holland's  Great  Plea  to  the  Jury 

was  and  still  is  a  mystery  to  me,  seemed  to 
dominate  her  life,  as  I  will  presently  show  you. 

"It  was  the  ghost  of  the  old  environment,  of 
the  old  parasitical  age,  when  women  were  so 
easily  enslaved  with  the  promise  of  idle  luxury 
and  transient  caresses,  stalking  into  the  midst 
of  a  nobler  effort  and  beckoning  her  backward 
while  yet  the  understanding  and  courage  were 
not  sufficiently  seasoned.  Later  I  shall  go  into 
these  things  more  fully. 

"I  will  prove  to  you  by  the  proper  Federal 
officials  that,  owing  to  a  change  of  design  by 
the  government,  the  ten-cent  stamps  on  this 
package,  bearing  this  particular  vignette,  could 
only  be  purchased  in  three  or  four  post-offices 
in  the  United  States  for  several  months  before 
and  at  the  time  the  package  was  mailed,  and 
the  only  place  east  of  the  post-office  at  St. 
Louis  was  in  Providence,  Rhode  Island,  and  I 
shall  also  prove  that  the  defendant  has  not  been 
in  Providence  in  four  years.  You  will  notice 
that  stamps  to  the  value  of  sixty  cents  were 
placed  on  the  parcel,  when  half  that  amount 
would  have  been  sufficient,  showing  that  who- 
ever mailed  it  did  not  care  to  have  it  officially 
weighed. 

"Another  circumstance  worthy  your  atten- 
231' 


An  American  Suffragette 

tion  is  that  poisoning  by  hydrocyanic  acid  is  so 
easily  recognized  that  it  has  seldom  been  used 
for  purposes  of  murder,  except  in  cases  where 
the  person  committing  the  crime  felt  safe  as  to 
his  own  identity,  and  desired  to  make  it  appear 
that  some  one  else  had  done  the  deed." 

She  paused  in  her  recital  and  cast  a  glance  at 
a  large,  muscular  man,  seated  among  a  group 
of  witnesses  for  the  defense.  He  gave  her  an 
almost  imperceptible  nod  in  the  affirmative,  and 
she  went  on  slowly  and  impressively: 

"What  is  more,  gentlemen  of  the  jury,  this 
candied  fruit  was  not  purchased  in  Boston,  but 
in  Providence,  and  the  person  buying  it  insisted 
on  a  perfectly  plain  box,  without  any  name 
upon  it ;  he  also  bought  several  separate  pieces 
of  similar  fruit." 

There  was  a  buzz  of  excitement  in  the  human 
hive,  which  the  bailiff  suppressed  by  a  sharp 
rap  of  his  gavel.  Those  who  had  caught  the 
signal  turned  their  eyes  from  Silvia  to  the  large 
man,  but  there  was  nothing  in  his  impassive 
demeanor  to  attract  attention. 

The  defendant  and  his  family  were  evidently 
as  much  at  sea  as  were  the  others  in  the  court- 
room as  to  the  significance  of  these  assertions, 
232 


Bilvia  Holland's  Great  Plea  to  the  Jury 

but  the  look  of  worry  had  entirely  disappeared 
from  the  face  of  Dr.  Earl. 

"It  is  true,"  she  went  on,  "that  I  had  taken 
the  little  girl  to  the  country  for  a  week  when 
this  awful  crime  was  committed,  but  Dr.  Earl 
knew  nothing  of  this,  and  the  evidence  is  al- 
ready so  clear  as  to  need  no  further  illumina- 
tion that  the  person  who  sent  the  poisoned 
candy  was  aware  of  the  fact  that  the  child  was 
not  at  home,  and  would  not  be  for  several  days 
at  least.  So  clear  is  it  that  Dr.  Earl  did  not 
know  the  child  was  in  the  country  that  I  will 
prove  to  you  that  he  sent  to  her  city  address  a 
box  of  pecans  which  were  forwarded  by  her 
mother  to  the  country,  and  I  will  offer  in  evi- 
dence the  box  in  which  they  were  sent.  The 
person  who  mailed  this  box  had  designs  on  one 
victim  only,  and  had  the  child  been  at  home  she 
would  undoubtedly  have  been  the  one  killed,  for 
she  would  have  been  certain  to  receive  the  first 
piece.  With  all  due  deference  to  the  learned 
district  attorney,  and  while  his  theory  is  possi- 
ble that  a  kiss  given  and  received  might  have 
caused  the  death  of  the  other,  the  probability 
is  so  remote  that  a  person  skilled  in  the  knowl- 
edge of  poisons  and  their  effects,  as  Dr.  Earl 
is,  would  scarcely  have  undertaken  to  poison 
233 


An  American  Suffragette 

two  people  in  this  clumsy  and  uncertain  fash- 
ion, when  the  placing  of  two  pieces  of  candied 
fruit  instead  of  one  on  the  top  of  the  box  was 
all  that  was  necessary  to  insure  the  end 
desired." 

She  paused  again,  and  gave  the  large  man 
another  look,  and  then  exhibited  a  card  to  the 
jury,  which  she  had  been  holding  in  her  hand 
from  the  beginning  of  her  address. 

"No,  gentlemen,  the  poison  was  intended  for 
but  one  person,  and  that  person  partook  of  it," 
she  said  sadly  and  earnestly.  She  held  a  pic- 
ture  postal  so  the  jury  could  see  it.  "This  post- 
card, as  you  see,  was  sent  to  Mrs.  Bell  from 
Magnolia  a  few  days  before  the  crime  occurred. 
It  is  dated  August  5th;  her  death  took  place 
August  9th.  Look  at  the  address  on  this  card, 
and  at  the  message  on  the  other  side.  Now  let 
me  show  you  a  strange  thing,  which  cannot  be 
merely  a  coincidence." 

She  took  the  outer  layer  of  thin  white  paper 
that  had  wrapped  the  box,  on  which  were  the 
stamps  and  the  address,  and  laid  it  over  the 
same  address  on  the  card,  and  the  length  and 
formation  of  each  letter  were  identical,  the 
punctuation  marks  and  the  lines  of  shading 
were  the  same,  on  paper  and  card. 
234 


Silvia  Holland's  Great  Plea  to  the  Jury 

"You  see  how  this  has  been  done,"  she  said. 
"The  address  on  the  paper  is  written  with  an 
indelible  pencil.  Ink  would  have  spread  and 
blotted.  We  shall  prove  to  you  that  the  ad- 
dress on  the  box  was  copied  by  tracing  from 
this  identical  card,  as  also  were  the  closing 
words  on  the  card  with  the  initials  which  were 
traced  on  the  paper  that  is  pasted  on  the  top 
of  the  box — 'With  best  wishes  to  you  and  Alice. 
J.  E.' " 

The  district  attorney  protested  to  the  Court 
against  so  much  detail  and  proof  going  into 
an  opening  statement,  and  the  Judge  looked 
inquiringly  at  Silvia. 

"I  know  I  am  pursuing  an  unusual  course," 
she  replied,  "but  I  promise  your  honor,  and 
also  the  honorable  district  attorney,  that  I  will 
not  abuse  my  privilege,  and  if  you  gentlemen 
will  bear  with  me  I  am  certain  that  I  shall  be 
able  to  render  a  distinct  service  to  the  State." 

The  Judge  had  followed  her  carefully,  and 
being  one  of  those  wearers  of  the  ermine  who 
believe  that  substantial  justice  rather  than  tech- 
nical results  should  be  the  aim  of  courts  in 
criminal  trials,  said  to  the  district  attorney,  "I 
am  certain  that  Miss  Holland  fully  under- 
stands the  rules  of  procedure  in  this  court  and 
235 


An  American  Suffragette 

will  adhere  to  them  as  strictly  as  the  nature  of 
her  defense  will  permit.  If  I  think  she  is  over- 
stepping them,  I  will  stop  her." 

Silvia  gave  another  glance  at  the  large  man. 
His  eyes  were  on  the  little  group  by  his  side 
at  the  time,  but  the  silence  caused  him  to  turn 
to  her  again,  and  after  another  affirmative  nod 
she  resumed. 

"It  is  difficult  for  me  to  cause  pain  to  any- 
thing that  lives.  I  feel  that  the  ant,  with  its 
wonderful  little  organism,  is  as  much  entitled 
to  the  uses  and  joys  of  this  dear  old  world  as 
I  am.  When  I  enlisted  in  this  case  it  was  to 
defend  a  man  whom  I  felt  certain  was  innocent, 
not  to  bring  any  other  person  to  the  bar  of 
justice,  and  even  now,  if  I  could  clear  the  fair 
name  of  my  client  from  the  remotest  suspicion 
of  ever  having  thought  of  this  crime,  without 
injury  to  another,  I  should  much  prefer  to  do 
so.  Not  that  I  am  unmindful  of  my  duty  as  a 
citizen,  but  I  am  more  conscious  of  the  ten- 
derer feelings  that  are  of  necessity  appealed 
to  in  such  a  case. 

"When  in  the  discharge  of  my  duty  I  found 
suspicious  footprints  leading  elsewhere  I  spent 
hours  determining  what  course  I  should  pur- 
sue in  this  complicated  situation.  The  sequel 
236 


Silvia  Holland's  Great  Plea  to  the  Jury 

will  give  all  of  you,  in  the  jury  box  and  in  this 
courtroom,  an  opportunity  to  decide  whether 
my  course  has  been  the  right  one.  God  knows 
I  have  prayed  to  be  shown  another  way,  but  I 
could  discover  none." 

She  paused,  and  the  tears  were  glistening  in 
her  eyes  and  her  voice  trembled,  but  she  re- 
gained her  self-control  at  once. 

"Before  I  did  aught  else,  I  had  two  skilled 
detectives  watch  the  suspected  person;  their 
observations  were  all  too  convincing.  It  was 
Eugene  Aram  again  telling  his  dream  to  the 
child,  but  this  time  the  guilt  was  acted. 

"Then  down  I  cast  me  on  my  face, 

And  first  began  to  weep, 
For  I  knew  my  secret  then  was  one 

That  earth  refused  to  keep: 
Or  land  or  sea,  though  he  should  be 

Ten  thousand  fathoms  deep. 

"So  wills  the  fierce,  avenging  sprite, 

Till  blood  for  blood  atones ! 
Ay,  though  he's  buried  in  a  cave, 

And  trodden  down  with  stones, 
And  years  have  rotted  off  his  flesh — 

The  world  shall  see  his  bones !" 

Once  more  the  tears  shone  in  her  eyes,  tears 
that  were  the  only  consolation  one  wretched 
237, 


An  American  Suffragette 

soul  in  that  courtroom  was  ever  to  know,  but 
she  dashed  them  away  impatiently. 

"To  prevent  injustice,  and  possible  injury, 
the  suspected  man  has  been  kept  under  surveil- 
lance ever  since." 

Again  there  was  a  murmur  of  voices  over 
the  courtroom,  and  Frank,  who  had  entered 
hastily,  just  after  she  began  her  address, 
called  her  attention  to  a  large  envelope  which 
he  laid  on  the  table  before  her.  She  looked  at 
him,  and  then  at  the  envelope,  and  gave  an  in- 
voluntary start  of  surprise  and  a  hastily  stifled 
exclamation.  "The  missing  letter!"  she  said, 
under  her  breath,  and  hastily  tore  it  open,  and 
glanced  at  the  first  and  last  pages,  while  the 
bailiff  restored  order. 

"I  must  beg  your  honor's  indulgence,"  she 
said,  "for  a  few  moments.  This  letter  contains 
information  of  vital  importance,  and  as  your 
honor  sees,  it  has  just  come  into  my  hands." 

The  Judge  granted  her  request,  and  while 
she  hastily  read  the  document,  the  excited  mur- 
mur swelled  again  in  spite  of  the  glaring  bailiff. 
In  a  few  minutes  she  turned  to  the  Judge. 

"Your  honor,"  she  said,  "this  is  a  letter  to 
me  written  by  Mrs.  Bell  only  a  few  hours  be- 
fore her  death;  I  can  easily  prove  her  hand- 
238 


Silvia  Holland's  Great  Plea  to  the  Jury 

writing,  and  in  any  event,  it  is  sworn  to  before 
a  notary.  The  matter  contained  therein  will 
end  this  trial.  That  I  can  use  it  as  part  of  the 
res  gesta,  I  have  no  doubt.  I  will  submit  it  to 
the  district  attorney  and  ask  him  to  examine  it, 
and  then  give  it  to  your  honor.  In  the  interest 
of  justice  and  my  client  I  would  like  to  read  it 
to  the  jury  at  this  time." 

She  handed  the  letter  to  the  district  attorney, 
and  while  he  read  it  she  seated  herself  and  con- 
ferred with  Frank.  "Where  in  the  world  did 
you  get  it?"  she  asked. 

"Carroll  and  spooks,"  he  began,  and  then 
went  on  more  seriously,  "but  where  on  earth 
did  you  hide  yourself?  We  have  been  madly 
tearing  around  New  York,  and  telephoning  all 
over  the  adjacent  territory  in  a  wild  endeavor 
to  find  you  and  get  this  into  your  hands.  I'm 
not  going  to  tell  you  about  the  letter  itself; 
that's  Carroll's  story.  We've  been  to  the  Stu- 
dios, and  everywhere  else  we  thought  there  was 
a  possibility  of  finding  you,  and  waited  at  your 
office  until  the  last  minute  in  the  hope  that 
you'd  come  there." 

"I  spent  the  night  at  Nutwood,  making  a 
last  search  for  the  letter,"  she  said.  "It  was 
only  a  chance,  but  I  felt  that  I  couldn't  give  it 
239 


An  American  Suffragette 

up.  This  morning  I  motored  down,  and  we 
had  some  delay,  so  that  I  had  to  come  directly; 
here.  But  it's  all  right." 

The  Judge  finished  reading  the  letter,  and 
called  Silvia  to  the  bench,  where  they  held  a 
whispered  conversation  with  the  district  attor- 
ney, glancing  once  or  twice  toward  the  little 
group  of  witnesses  where  the  large  man  sat. 
Then  Silvia  returned  to  her  seat,  and  the  dis- 
trict attorney  gave  some  hurried  directions  to  a 
deputy,  who  immediately  left  the  room,  while 
the  Judge  gave  whispered  instructions  to  a 
bailiff,  who  stationed  himself  at  the  general  en- 
trance. 

"You  may  read  the  letter,  Miss  Holland," 
said  the  Judge,  and  the  tension  in  the  court- 
room grew  almost  intolerable  as  she  rose,  hold- 
ing the  letter  in  shaking  hands,  and  began 
reading: 

"  'NEW  YORK,  August  9. 
"  'MY  DEAR  Miss  HOLLAND: 

'  'The  secret  I  have  longed  and  yet  hesitated 
to  tell  you  must  now  be  disclosed.  Of  course 
my  trouble  has  been  caused  by  a  man,  a  man 
whom  I  have  known  a  long  time  and  loved  too 
well.  He  was  here  day  before  yesterday  and 
we  had  a  stormy  interview — which  he  says  shall 
240 


lSilvia  Holland's  Great  Plea  to  the  Jury 

be  the  last.  For  a  long  time  his  manner  has 
been  changed  toward  me,  and  for  the  last  few 
months  he  has  neglected  me.  He  didn't  seem 
to  like  it  when  I  got  acquainted  with  you,  or 
when  you  paid  so  much  attention  to  Allie;  he 
said  he  didn't  see  what  you  wanted  of  her,  and 
asked  me  how  you  came  to  take  her  to  the  coun- 
try and  when  she  would  be  back,  and  wanted 
to  know  if  I  had  told  you  or  Dr.  Earl  of  my 
relations  with  him.  I  said  certainly  not,  and 
when  I  reproached  him  for  not  coming  to  see 
me  he  said  he  couldn't  come  here.  Since  Allie 
was  hurt,  I  have  only  met  him  a  few  times. 
Sometimes  I  have  been  happy  when  I  was  with 
him,  for  I  loved,  and  I  love  him,  better  than 
my  life,  but  I  have  not  wanted  to  deceive  you, 
and  every  day  the  old  life  has  grown  harder  to 
bear.  I  think  I  have  always  believed  that  he 
would  marry  me,  as  he  promised  in  the  begin- 
ning, until  this  summer.  Now  I  see  that,  more 
than  he  has  deceived  me,  I  have  deceived  my- 
self, as  every  woman  deceives  herself  when  she 
forgets  the  honor  of  the  present  for  promises 
that  are  to  be  redeemed  in  the  future. 

"  'I  had  made  up  my  mind  to  break  away 
from  this  life  and  try  to  begin  over  again ;  you 
had  shown  me  the  way,  and  I  saw  the  means 
241 


An  American  Suffragette 

by  which  I  could  support  myself  and  Allie,  and 
not  be  beholden  to  him.  God  knows  I  never 
wanted  to  take  his  money,  and  when  it  was 
grudgingly  given  it  was  worse  than  gall  and 
wormwood  to  have  to  ask  him  for  it.  I  did  not 
mean  to  see  him  any  more,  for  when  I  look  into 
his  face  I  forget  everything  except  the  days 
when  he  did  love  me.  I  meant  to  tear  him  out 
of  my  heart,  and  devote  my  life  to  Allie. 

"  'And  then,  Miss  Holland,  I  made  the  dis- 
covery that  has  made  me  desperate,  the  one 
discovery  that  tells  a  woman  she  is  helpless,  and 
that  not  only  her  whole  future,  but  that  of  an- 
other, depend  upon  the  whim  of  a  man.  I  de- 
manded that  he  should  keep  his  promise ;  I  will 
not  permit  a  child  of  mine  to  go  through  the 
world  bearing  the  brand  of  illegitimacy,  and  I 
told  him  so  plainly.  Perhaps  I  was  wrong  to 
lose  my  temper  and  threaten  him,  but  I  am 
half  mad.  I  told  him  I  might  bear  the  blame, 
and  the  pain,  but  that  if  he  allowed  me  to  go 
through  this  dreadful  time  alone  that  he  should 
share  the  shame,  if  I  dragged  him  through  the 
courts  to  fasten  it  on  him. 

"  'I  don't  wonder  much  that  he  was  infuria- 
ted with  me,  or  that  he  threatened  to  kill  me  if  I 
didn't  let  him  alone.  He  said  he  hadn't  the 
242 


Silvia  Holland's  Great  Plea  to  the  Jury 

money  to  give  me  all  I  needed,  but  if  I  would 
be  sensible  and  not  make  a  fuss  and  a  scandal, 
when  he  married  the  rich  woman  he  expected 
to  win  that  he  would  give  me  a  fortune  ample 
for  myself  and  my  children  for  the  balance  of 
my  life.  I  think  it  was  the  thought  of  his  mar- 
rying another  woman  when  my  child  was  com- 
ing into  the  world  fatherless  that  made  me  be- 
side myself,  but  I  could  not  bear  it  and  I  said 
some  dreadful  things. 

"  'Now,  I  want  to  know  what  I  can  do,  or  if 
there  is  any  law  to  defend  a  woman  who  makes 
a  mistake ;  if  there  is,  I  know  you  will  find  it.  I 
am  going  to  swear  to  this,  so  you  will  know 
that  I  am  in  earnest,  and  will  not  back  out  like 
so  many  women  do. 

"  'One  other  thing  I  think  I  ought  to  tell  you. 
While  we  were  talking  he  picked  up  the  postal 
Dr.  Earl  sent  me,  from  Magnolia,  and  then  he 
began  all  over  again  and  talked  awfully  about 
him.  I  don't  know  why,  but  he  hates  him  and 
will  injure  him  if  he  can. 

'  'You  will  find  this  at  your  office  when  you 

get  back  from  the  country;  even  now  I  can't 

bear  to  tell  the  whole  truth,  and  yet  I  suppose 

you  must  know  it  if  you  are  to  help  me.    What 

243 


An  American  Suffragette 

fools  women  are,  Miss  Holland;  I  ought  to 
hate  him,  and  yet  if  it  were  to  be  the  last  word 
I  should  ever  write — now,  as  I  always  have,  I 
love  Orrin  Morris. 

'  'Your  unhappy  friend, 

"  'EMMA  BELL.'  " 

Silvia  had  scarcely  finished  the  letter,  paus- 
ing instinctively  before  she  read  the  name  of 
the  guilty  man,  when  the  large  man,  who  had 
been  furtively  keeping  guard  of  the  little  group 
of  witnesses  where  Dr.  Morris  was  seated, 
sprang  toward  Morris  in  a  vain  attempt  to 
knock  from  his  hand  a  vial  which  he  but  that 
instant  had  touched  to  his  lips.  At  the  same 
moment  a  smaller  man  on  the  other  side  of  the 
group  made  a  similar  effort,  but  they  were  both 
too  late.  Almost  instantly  the  doomed  man 
became  rigid,  a  slight  froth  appeared  on  his 
lips,  the  pupils  of  his  eyes  dilated  and  the  lids 
opened  in  a  wide  and  horrible  stare.  There  was 
a  general  rush  in  his  direction  on  the  part  of  the 
medical  men  gathered  for  the  trial,  but  the  first 
of  the  physicians  to  gain  his  side  saw  the  hope- 
lessness of  any  effort  to  save  him  and  waved  the 
crowd  back.  In  less  than  five  minutes  he  was 
244 


Silvia  Holland's  Great  Plea  to  the  Jury 

dead,  and  in  the  sudden  appalled  silence  the 
bailiffs  cleared  a  way  and  removed  the  body, 
a  considerable  portion  of  the  curious  crowd 
following. 

Every  day  during  the  trial  Dr.  Morris  had 
occupied  practically  the  same  seat  in  the  court- 
room. His  naturally  colorless  face  gave  no 
indication  of  the  emotions  within,  and  when 
Silvia's  address  told  him  all  too  plainly  that 
his  deeds  were  to  be  publicly  uncovered,  he 
turned  a  trifle  more  livid,  but  otherwise  gave 
no  evidence  of  his  feelings.  He  had  known  for 
several  days  that  he  was  under  surveillance  and 
he  understood,  at  last,  that  the  reason  for  his 
subpoena  as  an  expert  for  the  defense  was  to 
keep  him  constantly  in  attendance  on  the  court, 
but  he  faced  his  ordeal  with  resolute  will,  if  not 
with  supreme  courage.  As  often  before  dur- 
ing his  career  he  had  carefully  scanned  the 
path  he  was  to  tread  and  was  prepared  for 
every  emergency.  When  the  fatal  exposure 
came,  which  he  had  hoped  until  the  last  might 
be  withheld,  he  was  determined  that  none 
should  know  aught  from  his  lips  concerning  its 
truth  or  falsity.  They  might  speculate  as  to 
the  significance  of  his  death  by  his  own  hand, 
245 


Ait  American  Suffragette 

but  he  would  neither  say  nor  do  anything  that 
would  throw  additional  light  upon  the  subject. 

Poor  Morris!  Other  learned  professional 
men  before  him  had  sought  to  mystify  the 
world  as  to  their  misdeeds  by  blotting  out  their 
own  lives,  not  realizing  that  every  accusing 
finger  of  the  seen  and  the  unseen  world  would 
be  instinctively  and  unerringly  pointed  toward 
their  mortal  remains  with  the  final  and  irrev- 
ocable verdict — "Suicide  is  confession." 

When  quiet  was  restored  the  Court  ordered 
the  defendant  to  come  forward,  and  Silvia, 
trembling  with  emotion,  stepped  to  the  front 
of  the  Judge's  bench  with  him. 

"It  is  quite  evident,  sir,"  began  the  Judge, 
clearing  his  throat,  "that  a  mistake  has  been 
made  in  your  case.  Not  an  intentional  one,  or 
one  that  could  have  been  avoided,  apparently. 
The  manner  in  which  you  have  been  defended 
leaves  not  a  vestige  of  suspicion  attaching  to 
you  either  in  connection  with  this  matter,  your 
professional  qualifications  or  your  standing  as 
a  citizen.  Let  me  assure  you  that  such  a  result, 
under  the  circumstances,  is  most  gratifying  to 
all  of  the  officers  of  the  law,  for  our  purpose  is 
to  guard  society  by  punishing  the  guilty  and 
246 


Silvia  Holland's  Great  Plea  to  the  Jury 

protecting  the  innocent.     Sir,   you   are  dis- 
charged as  a  defendant  in  this  case." 

Great  applause  greeted  this  speech  from  the 
Court,  and  the  district  attorney  added  his  own 
tribute,  while  Silvia  was  given  an  impromptu 
reception  by  jurors,  court  officers  and  specta- 
tors. When  this  was  over,  and  the  throng  that 
had  surrounded  her  and  her  client  went  their 
way  on  the  quest  of  new  sensations,  she  found 
herself  standing  alone  with  him  before  the 
bench,  in  almost  the  identical  spot  where  he 
had  entered  his  plea  of  "Not  guilty"  a  few 
weeks  before.  The  Ramseys  and  Frank  and 
Carroll  were  eagerly  waiting  their  turn  to 
shower  congratulations  upon  them,  but  as  John 
Earl  took  both  her  hands  in  his,  Silvia  was  un- 
conscious of  all  else.  The  eyes  she  lifted  to  his 
were  swimming  in  happy  tears  that  could  not 
drown  the  love  they  revealed.  He  dared  not 
trust  his  voice  for  more.  Besides,  what  more 
was  there  to  say?  For  all  the  world  lay  in  the 

single  word — "Silvia!" 

******* 

In  a  short  time,  Jack  and  Silvia  were  ab- 
sorbed in  their  respective  professions,  but 
never  failing  in  their  duty  to  the  great  world 

247 


An  American  Suffragette 

movement  that  was  making  real  the  prophecy 
of  England's  poetic  seer: 

"We  two  will  serve  them  both  in  aiding  her — 
Will  clear  away  the  parasitic  forms 
That  seem  to  keep  her  up  but  drag  her  down — 
Will  leave  her  space  to  burgeon  out  of  all 
Within  her — let  her  make  herself  her  own 
To  give  or  keep,  to  live  and  learn  and  be 
All  that  not  harms  distinctive  womanhood." 

There  was  no  "task"  to  their  duties,  for  the 
all-powerful  though  subtle  inspiration  of  genu- 
ine love  made  each  day  only  a  part  of  a  splendid 
dream  which  they  felt  could  never  end. 

And  the  love  that  leads  to  high  endeavor 
and  unlocks  the  storehouses  of  human  progress 
crowned  their  efforts  with  success,  and  hu- 
manity was  better  and  nobler  for  their  deeds 
and  example. 


THE  END. 


248 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 

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